Toyota Motor Corp will shut all its factories in Japan for 11 days to combat a global slowdown that is not only hitting company profits but could, a report says, unleash a wave of social unrest in China.

A proposal to bail out the big three U.S. automakers passed the House of Representatives but its prospects looked grim in the Senate where supporters faced an uphill struggle on Thursday to keep it alive.

Car dealer Lookers said on Thursday third-quarter trading had fallen off by around 20 percent due to the turbulent macroeconomic environment, and the outlook for the industry was poor.

Car and aircraft technology company GKN said Monday that it expects pretax profits for the fourth quarter to be materially below its mid-year guidance as turbulence in the automotive sector deepens.

Electronics makers Sony and Samsung provided new evidence that the global financial crisis is feeding through to businesses and consumers with gloomy earnings forecasts sending Asian stocks sharply lower.

Soft drinks maker Britvic said on Thursday total 52-week sales rose by 29 percent, matching expectations, and reiterated earnings for the period will be in line with expectations.

Confectionery giant Cadbury reported a 6 percent rise in third-quarter underlying sales after a 7.3 percent first-half rise and said it was on track to meet its annual sales and margin goals.

Premier Foods, Britain's biggest food manufacturer, said on Monday it is examining ways to cut debt and has been approached by several parties with proposals to enable it to do so.

Irish drinks group C&C said on Thursday that first-half earnings fell slightly and Chief Executive Maurice Pratt would resign because his business strategy in the last two years had not met expectations.

WH Smith, the newspapers, books and stationery retailer, posted a better-than- expected 15 percent increase in full-year profit, as margin gains and cost savings offset a continuing fall in underlying sales.

Anglo-Dutch consumer goods group Unilever named Paul Polman, outgoing head of the Americas at Swiss food group Nestle, as its new chief executive to replace Patrick Cescau.

Signet, the world's biggest speciality jewellery retailer, posted a 27.8 percent fall in first-half profit, slightly better than analysts had feared, but said the trading outlook remained very tough.

Diageo, the world's biggest alcoholic drinks group, met forecasts on Thursday with an 11 percent rise in annual earnings, but cut its profit growth target due to the economic slowdown and rising input costs.

Dutch brewer Heineken NV first-half operating profit rose 7.4 percent, and it said on Wednesday it had managed to pass on higher costs to most markets apart from the United States, despite weaker economies.

Irish food company Kerry Group posted a 6.8 percent rise in first-half earnings on Tuesday and reconfirmed its full-year earnings per share forecast.

Cadbury Plc reported a strong first half on Wednesday with revenue up 14.1 per cent and pre-tax profit up 47.6 per cent. The confectionary group said its revenue for the first six months of the year was up to £2,653 million while group underlying profit reached £223 million.

Dignity Plc, the UK's only listed funeral firm, said on Tuesday that it had seen underlying pre-tax profit increase 16.6 per cent to £21.1 million in the first half of the year.

Catering firm Compass Group said on Monday that it had a strong third quarter and that its profit margins and revenues, excluding acquisitions, were in line with levels experienced in the first half.

Reckitt Benkiser said on Monday that its first half year net revenues increased 11 per cent. The cleaning products company said its second quarter revenue was also up 11 per cent to £1,564 million thanks to strong sales in brands like Finish, Vanish, Dettol, Lysol and Airwick.