Vittorio Colao is moving quickly to put his stamp on Vodafone. Four months after he succeeded Arun Sarin as chief executive of the world’s biggest mobile operator by revenues, Mr Colao unveiled the industry bellwether’s second big change in strategy in two years. After an aggressive push into emerging markets, Mr Colao plans to slow (though not halt) entry into new countries in favour of building the group’s existing businesses.

Hunkering down makes sense. Expansion into India has left Vodafone well-positioned in one of the few economies expected to show significant growth next year. As recession bites elsewhere, a planned £1bn in cost cuts by 2011 and hoped-for improvements in the UK and Turkey should provide a buffer against weaker sales.