Today's other stories in brief

Up to 6,000 jobs set for science park

Up to 6,000 jobs could be created at a planned State-backed science and technology park in Cork.

Cork county manager Martin Riordan yesterday announced plans for the Cork Science Innovation and Technology Park at Curraheen, on the city’s western fringe. The 150-acre park will have the potential to create 5,900 jobs and could generate €450 million a year for the economy.

The county council, UCC, Cork Institute of Technology, Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland are backing the project.

US retail sales in surprise rebound

Sales at US retailers unexpectedly rebounded in January, government data showed yesterday, likely boosted by post-holiday discounts and providing a glimmer of hope for the recession-hit economy.

The commerce department said total retail sales rose 1 per cent, advancing for the first time in seven months, after slumping by a revised 3 per cent in December, previously reported as a 2.7 per cent decline.

January’s increase in retail sales was the biggest since November 2007.

Excluding motor vehicles and parts, sales were up 0.9 per cent after a revised record 3.2 per cent decline in December, previously reported as a 3.1 per cent drop, the department said. The January rise was the highest reading since May 2008.

Analysts had forecast January retail sales to fall by 0.8 per cent. Excluding motor vehicles, sales had been predicted to drop by 0.5 per cent. – (Reuters)

Renault scraps 2009 profit targets

French carmaker Renault scrapped its once sacrosanct 2009 profit targets, dropped its dividend and slashed output, as it warned that the economic crisis would change the landscape of the global auto industry.

The group posted a 78 per cent drop in 2008 net profit and a 7 per cent decline in sales today due to what it described as a “financial and economic crisis of massive proportions” and said it expected the market to get worse this year.

It scrapped its dividend payment for 2008 but chief executive Carlos Ghosn told a news conference it would return to paying a dividend as soon as possible. Mr Ghosn also said Renault had cut production by 45 per cent in the fourth quarter.

Disappointing results from France's largest carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen on Wednesday "helped set the table with low expectations for Renault, which it met", said Morgan Stanley analysts in a research note. – (Reuters)

Coca-Cola defies recession gloom

Coca-Cola has defied the recessionary gloom, saying it will stick to its long-term growth targets in spite of what Muhtar Kent, chief executive, called an “incredibly challenging economic environment”.

Coca-Cola yesterday reported a 4 per cent increase in sales volumes in the last three months of 2008 and a 10 per cent increase in comparable earnings. – (Financial Times service)

US oil prices settle at two-month low

US oil prices fell 5.5 per cent yesterday to settle at the lowest point in nearly two months, dragged down by swelling crude stocks in the United States and concerns over the health of the global economy. – (Reuters)