A sticky moment yesterday for Alistair Darling, who was in Tokyo for the meeting of the Group of Seven finance ministers and central bank governors.

Moments before a press briefing at the Tokyo stock exchange, a nervous-looking PR from the British Embassy charged up to the stage after realising to his horror that the Chancellor was in danger of having his picture taken in front of a share trading ticker screen covered in minus signs. (It was another nasty day on the Tokyo exchange).

Chairs were hastily shuffled around, cameras were told to face in the opposite direction and a new message miraculously appeared behind Darling's head declaring: “Welcome Rt Hon Alistair Darling, Chancellor of the Exchequer, United Kingdom”. Between the time when he entered the building to the end of his press conference, the Nikkei index dropped almost 100 points.

Plans for Darling to ring the old Tokyo stock exchange bell were mysteriously abandoned without explanation.

Casinos stubbed out by smoking ban

Times are tough in the casino industry, what with the smoking ban, the duty rise, the scrapping of lucrative gaming machines and the consumer spending slowdown. I hear that Gala Coral, which has already put five bingo clubs on notice of closure, is consulting on the closure of three casinos, including the Rotunda in Glasgow, and the cutting of up to 30 assistant general manager posts across its estate.

'Hairshirt' Hayward disposes of Browne's old jet

Looks like the top bods at BP will soon be forced to slum it in the business lounge. The Gulfstream executive jet once used to convey Lord Browne of Madingley to far-flung locations is to be sold. It seems that Tony “Hairshirt” Hayward, his Lordship's successor as chief executive, seems to be more interested in the saving — some $1.5million per year — than travelling in style. The oil giant says that, where absolutely necessary, it will resort to hiring executive air conveyance. How terribly plebeian.

No change — except the shares plummet

Am I alone in wondering whether the sell-off of consumer stocks in the wake of the economic downturn has been overdone? Take the example of Clerkenwell Ventures, an AIM-listed cash shell that is seeking acquisitions in the leisure sector. The company, which has yet to buy anything, has £30 million of cash on its balance sheet. Yet its market cap has almost halved since September to less than £23 million. Has the world gone mad or am I missing something?

Guinness date with fate set for April

I hear that Diageo will announce the fate of its Guinness brewery in Dublin in April. It is more than six months since it launched a review of the 56-acre site at St James's Gate, which property experts value at up to €1 billion. The brewery exports Guinness flavour extract to 50 breweries around the world and brews Draft Guinness for Great Britain and Ireland. Although no final decision has been made, the latest theory is that Diageo will retain the Guinness Storehouse, the country's most popular tourist attraction, and enough land to continue producing the extract there. That would mean building a brewery outside the city, although some experts reckon it may look to continue brewing Draft Guinness for the Irish market at St James's Gate.

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