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Cushion maker brings production back to Britain following a steep rise in Chinese wagesProduction was offshored in 2004 when labor cost differed significantly; they’re estimated to be equal next yearUK employees are more productive, but young people in particular lack the requisite skills, Caldeira CEO says It moved half its production to China to keep costs down, but eight years later one company is bringing production back to Britain.It’s another example of the backshoring trend that has seen many European manufacturers relocate their business back home.Caldeira is a cushion-making business headquartered in Merseyside, Northern England. Since 2004 it has also [...]

The U.S. added 146,000 jobs in November and the unemployment rate fell to 7.7%, the lowest level since December 2008, the Labor Department said Friday. Hurricane Sandy appeared to have little effect on hiring and employment last month, the government said. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had expected an increase of just 80,000 jobs because of the disruption caused by the storm. The unemployment rate was projected to hold steady at 7.9%. It fell mainly because 350,000 people dropped out of the labor force. Employment gains for October and September, meanwhile, were revised somewhat lower. The number of new jobs created [...]

TOKYO Asian shares touched fresh 16-month highs on Friday as investors awaited U.S. nonfarm payrolls data due later in the day, with sentiment underpinned by signs that China’s economy is stabilizing. European shares will likely gain modestly, with financial spreadbetters predicting London’s FTSE 100 , Paris’s CAC-40 and Frankfurt’s DAX to open as much as 0.4 percent higher. A 0.1 percent rise in U.S. stock futures hinted at a steady Wall Street open. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan <.MIAPJ0000PUS> rose 0.5 percent, and was set for its third-straight weekly gain with a 1.3 percent advance. The index [...]

Outgoing U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Schapiro delayed immediately implementing a rule to lift a ban on broader-based advertising for private placements in part because she feared it would tarnish her legacy as a pro-investor leader of the agency, internal SEC emails obtained by a U.S. House of Representatives oversight panel show. The emails were highlighted in a letter critical of Schapiro sent to her on Friday by congressman Patrick McHenry, the Republican chairman of a prominent House subcommittee that oversees financial services, who called on Schapiro to hurry up and finalize the rule. Schapiro, who is stepping [...]

PARIS The French government struck a deal with ArcelorMittal on Friday which will see the steelmaker invest 180 million euros ($ 234 million) in its Florange steelworks, allowing some 600 jobs at two shuttered blast furnaces to be saved. Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said the two furnaces would not be restarted for now, given weak European steel demand, but ArcelorMittal would keep them in working order for future use in a test project for environmentally friendly steel production. The deal saves face for Socialist President Francois Hollande, allowing him to fulfill an election pledge to fight industrial layoffs while avoiding [...]

PARIS Steelmaker ArcelorMittal will invest 180 million euros in its Florange steelworks in northern France under a deal with the government to save jobs at two shuttered blast furnaces, Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said on Friday. Ayrault said the investment, to be made over five years, meant there would be no layoffs at the site, although the two blast furnaces would not be restarted for now given flagging demand for steel in Europe. “The government decided against the idea of a temporary nationalization,” Ayrault told reporters, three hours before a midnight deadline to strike a deal, adding: “There will be [...]

Despite the nation’s unemployment rate remaining at elevated levels, there are some industries straining to hire qualified workers. The 2008 financial crisis changed the economic landscape and the way companies and employers staff their payrolls. A flagging economy and the declining demand for products and services are causing companies to really fight for relevancy and growth, says Gary Burnison, CEO of recruiting firm Korn/Ferry International. Remaining relevant in this economy is every company’s challenge right now, says Jody Miller, Business Talent Group’s chairman and CEO—a battle they must win by developing innovative products, penetrating new markets and expanding core assets. [...]

‘Tis the season for making some extra money, and this is a time when, if you are looking for full-time work and haven’t had any luck, you can make a little extra money to get you by for the next few months.  Seasonal jobs, mostly in retail, are a great way for college students and also retired individuals to make a little extra fun money for the holidays. Some of these positions will also be full-time, if that is something you are looking for. Plus, think of the discount when you work at these stores! **EMAIL FFJOBHUNT@NEWS.COM FOR MORE INFORMATION ON COMPANIES [...]

Citigroup Inc is on track to cut 300 sales and trading jobs globally this year, as part of its plan to streamline its banking operations, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people briefed on the process. The sales and trading unit of the bank employs about 17,000 people, the Journal said. (http://link.reuters.com/kyz93t) A Citigroup spokeswoman declined to comment specifically on the latest round of cuts but said the company had “been making targeted headcount reductions throughout the year in certain businesses and functions across Citi as part of our efforts to control expenses during the current environment”, the Journal said. [...]

NEW YORK/SAN FRANCISCO Texas Instruments is eliminating 1,700 jobs, as it winds down its mobile processor business to focus on chips for more profitable markets like cars and home appliances. Texas Instruments said in September it would halt costly investments in the increasingly competitive smartphone and tablet chip business, leading Wall Street to speculate that part of the company’s processor unit, called OMAP, could be sold. The layoffs are equivalent to nearly 5 percent of the Austin, Texas-based company’s global workforce. “A sale would have been better than a restructuring but a restructuring is certainly better than nothing,” Sanford Bernstein [...]