Reuters eyes switch to India

MEDIA group Reuters is the latest British firm to look to India for cheap labour. It may move some of its data operations to save costs.

Reuters said it had shortlisted a couple of sites, including one in Bangalore.' It had yet to make a final decision but it may move 'certain functions' of its content division, which employs 1,100 staff worldwide.

HSBC, LloydsTSB and BT have all opened call centres in India to save costs. The Communication Workers Union says the trend for business to seek overseas labour could mean the loss of more than 200,000 jobs in the UK over five years.

Reuters' plan to open in India could affect staff who organise and collect the financial data that appears on trading and information terminals.

Any redundancies will form part of the 3,000 job cuts announced in February. The firm has no plans to close its data office in Tiverton, Devon, which employs 300 staff.

Investors will be pleased that chief executive Tom Glocer is tackling Reuters' costs. Its shares have slumped from a peak of 1620p to 245p amid criticism that it has been slow to react to the economic downturn.