The Business Matrix: Friday 27 April 2012

Nintendo reports first ever loss

Nintendo reported its first ever operating loss yesterday as the video games group behind the Wii posted an annual deficit of ¥37.3bn (£285m). The company, which began in 1889 making playing cards in the back streets of Kyoto, has been hammered by a precipitous drop-off in sales of its Wii, DS handheld console and its new 3DS version. MORE

EDF and Eneco to build wind farm

EDF Energy and the Dutch power company Eneco are to jointly develop an offshore wind project to the west of the Isle of Wight. The Navitus Bay Offshore Wind Project could ultimately deliver 900-1200MW at full capacity, enough to supply 820,000 homes, although most wind farms operate at an annual average of a third of full capacity.

International helps Asos sales

The online fashion retailer Asos unveiled another soaring set of sales figures yesterday that, while short of some City forecasts, show a business in rude health. In the three months to the end of March, revenues jumped 33 per cent to £127m. The most striking growth is coming from the international arm, up 63 per cent to £77m.

HSBC confirms 2,217 UK job cuts

HSBC has confirmed that 2,217 of its people in the UK will lose their jobs in the coming months. The cull is part of the wider, 30,000 jobs worldwide that chief executive Stuart Gulliver announced last year as part of a major attempt to slash costs. In total, 3,167 jobs will be affected, but almost 1,000 of those will be redeployed to other jobs.

Borders taps Falkland backers

The Falkland Islands oil company Borders & Southern boosted its exploration funds by raising £46m in a share placing yesterday – just three days after disappointing results from its first wildcat well in the area pushed its shares down nearly a third. Borders placed the shares at Tuesday's closing price of 84p.

UK nuclear reactor closed

One of the world's oldest nuclear reactors shut down for good in Britain on Wednesday, five days earlier than planned, after an operational issue forced it to disconnect from the grid. Its operator said the shut down of the 41-year-old reactor 2 at Wylfa plant on Anglesey cuts 620MW of Britain's power capacity.

Bairstow Eves' year starts well

Countrywide, the owner of high street estate agents including Bairstow Eves, offered hopeful signs for the housing market yesterday as underlying earnings more than trebled to £4.5m between January and March – its strongest start to a year since the credit crunch began.

Unilever prices are going up

Rising food prices are biting at the supermarket till, and even giant producers such as Unilever admit they are feeling the pinch. With raw materials and commodity costs inflating, consumer goods giant Unilever is putting up its own prices in response.

Admiral's car count takes off

Elephant and Diamond insurer Admiral said its car insurance vehicle count increased 13 per cent to three million in the first quarter, while claims trends were unchanged. Chief executive Henry Engelhardt said it continued to "grow and prosper".

Fiat profits up on forecasts

The Italian car maker Fiat has beat analysts' forecasts for first-quarter earnings as its US unit Chrysler posted its best quarterly profits since its 2009 bankruptcy, once again compensating for declining sales in Europe.