Business Diary: Ryanair is the right horse to back

Thanks in no small part to Michael O'Leary's largesse, the prize money for Cheltenham's Ryanair Chase is being boosted from £220,000 to £250,000 this year at a time when it is being cut for most other races. So now you know where all those "puerile" (copyright OFT) extra fees which you have to use a Visa Electron on the third Thursday of a 30-day month to avoid are going.

Tomorrow's world can take some time

The Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas has finally closed, so when will we see all those fantastic gizmos and gadgets in the shops? Not for a while, if last year's show is anything to go by. Some of the high-tech televisions displayed at the 2009 CES still haven't made it into production and, as for Schwinn's Tailwind electric bike, (one of the stars a year ago) interest seems to be limited, not least as it costs more than a small car.

All breakages must be paid for

Still on the CES, top marks to BBC reporter Dan Simmons for his demo of Sonim's new unbreakable mobile phone. In front of Sonim's CEO – who looked only marginally more embarrassed than Simmons himself – the intrepid hack managed to break the "indestructible handset" in about five seconds flat.

Terror stalks the building industry

We know 2009 was tough for the construction industry, but is Building magazine guilty of just a little bit of melodrama? Its latest front cover, left, is based on the popular horror movie I Know What You Did Last Summer and features a terrified, blood-spattered woman. "How scary is 2010 going to be?" asks the magazine. Hopefully not that scary.

A sign of a tough year to come for retailing?

Don't believe everything you hear about the new-found, robust health of Britain's high streets. Oxfam reports that donations to its shops are 15 per cent down on previous years, despite January being one of its biggest months for collections as people clear out their wardrobes for the new year. Christmas may have been a last hurrah for retail.

Number of the day: $1m

How much Nokia's Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo is offering makers of the first phone to improve lives in the developing world