By Dominic Ponsford
Financial Times journalist James Harding has been named as the new business editor of The Times replacing Patience Wheatcroft, who last week started as editor of the Sunday Telegraph.
Harding would have previously worked closely with Times editor Robert Thomson, who himself came from the FT. He was Washington bureau chief for the FT from 2002 to 2005, media editor from 1999 to 2002 and opened the paper’s Shanghai bureau in 1996.
He speaks Japanese, Chinese, French and German.
Thomson (pictured) said: “James is one of the most outstanding journalists of his generation and his breadth of experience in reporting on international business and policy issues is second to none. He will oversee a Times business team which is by far the best on Fleet Street and, rightly, has growing international ambitions, both in print and online."
Harding said: "I have loved working at the FT and felt very lucky to have been part of a great newspaper’s continuing global expansion, but when you are asked to edit the business pages of The Times, it is an offer you can’t refuse. The business pages of The Times perform a pivotal role in the UK and I am looking forward to joining such a highly-regarded team."
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