TUI warns of poor winter sun demand August 12, 2009 DEMAND for summer holidays is holding up in the recession, Thomson owner TUI Travel said yesterday, but it warned the winter season could be bleak. TUI said that a surge of late-bookings, prompted by dismal British weather, has left the group with fewer summer holidays left to sell than last year. Late summer bookings contributed [...]
Mitie acquires UK Dalkia arm August 12, 2009 UK maintenance firm Mitie said it had acquired the British arm of Dalkia, the outsourcing group owned by France’s EDF and Veolia for £130m and had raised £43m through a share placing. Mitie, which cleans the Tower of London, said it had acquired Dalkia Technical Facilities Management to boost the reach and depth of its [...]
Moody’s: Credit quality diving August 12, 2009 THE QUALITY of credit in Western Europe continued to deteriorate sharply in the second quarter, with a record-breaking 122 financial institutions downgraded, according to Moody’s. The ratings giant said the deterioration continued to hit most major economies in the region. In total, 177 bonds were downgraded, amid fears that companies may struggle to maintain repayments [...]
SOCO profits boost exploration August 12, 2009 Oil and gas explorer SOCO International said yesterday it will launch a major exploration programme in West Africa over the next 18 months after swinging to a first-half pre-tax profit of $31.6m (£19.1m). Chief executive Ed Story said he hoped to find 500m barrels of oil in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Congo [...]
SWISS AND US REACH DEAL IN UBS TAX EVASION PROBE August 12, 2009 THE SWISS and US governments have reached a preliminary agreement in the long-running dispute about UBS clients suspected of tax evasion. US Justice Department attorney Stuart Gibson said the two sides had “initialled” a settlement, avoiding a potentially long and costly court case. The details of the deal were not released, although it is thought [...]
Lok’n Store chief executive calls storage recession proof August 12, 2009 SELF-storage firm Lok’n Store is defying the gloom and will continue its winning streak, chief executive Andrew Jacobs said yesterday. Despite fears that the storage sector would suffer from the property slump, Jacobs revealed the group’s rate of storage occupancy was now up 10 per cent from the beginning of 2009, and was now achieving [...]
RBS paying pair of bankers 12m a year to jump ship August 12, 2009 ROYAL Bank of Scotland (RBS) is understood to have spent more than £12m hiring two bankers, in a move which comes as City watchdog the Financial Services Authority (FSA) published its new code on banker’s pay yesterday. RBS, which is 70 per cent owned by the taxpayer, has poached Antonio Polverino, a star bond trader [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING August 12, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES BHP CALLS FOR MARKETS TO SET IRON ORE PRICESBHP Billiton, the world’s biggest miner, has made a plea for the “emotion and anxiety” to be taken out of the iron ore business with a shift to market-based pricing like oil or coal. The plea by Marius Kloppers, chief executive of BHP, came a [...]
Moody’s: Credit quality diving August 12, 2009 THE QUALITY of credit in Western Europe continued to deteriorate sharply in the second quarter, with a record-breaking 122 financial institutions downgraded, according to Moody’s. The ratings giant said the deterioration continued to hit most major economies in the region. In total, 177 bonds were downgraded, amid fears that companies may struggle to maintain repayments [...]
Aquarius loses as demand drops August 12, 2009 Aquarius Platinum, the world’s fourth-biggest producer of platinum, said yesterday it had swung to a full-year net loss of $45.7m (£27.6m) on weaker metal prices and reduced output. Aquarius said production fell to 455,675 ounces from 500,203 ounces in its last financial year, hit by the suspension of operations at its South African Everest mine [...]