Samsonite makes case for new CEO Ramesh Tainwala August 27, 2014 Luggage giant Samsonite yesterday announced the appointment of Ramesh Tainwala as chief executive as sales reached a record $1bn (£600m) in the first half of 2014. The Hong Kong-listed company said Tainwala, the group’s chief operating officer, would take over when current CEO Tim Parker stands aside on 1 October. His appointment comes as Samsonite [...]
Estee Lauder has a beautiful year in Britain August 27, 2014 Fashion house Estée Lauder UK retail sales were up 10 per cent for the fiscal year ending 30 June. Britain is the second largest market for the company, which outperformed the Prestige Beauty sector market, where retail sales were up 5.4 per cent.
Balfour Beatty portfolio zooms to above £1bn August 27, 2014 The value of Balfour Beatty’s public-private partnership portfolio has soared by nearly 50 per cent to over £1bn the major construction company revealed yesterday. It was Balfour’s first major announcement since it chose to go it alone after rebuffing repeated merger proposals from rival Carillion. The results from the directors’ valuation of the portfolio showed [...]
India supreme court coal licence ruling hits billionaires’ wallets August 27, 2014 A group of Indian billionaires have seen their worth take a significant hit after the nation’s Supreme Court ruled this week that all coal mining licences in the country from 1993 were illegal. The ruling came after a regulatory report in 2012 that found sales to firms had been underpriced by as much as $33bn [...]
Shell nears sale of Nigeria oil assets for $5bn August 27, 2014 Shell is believed to be poised to announce a multi-billion-dollar deal to sell four of its oilfields and a pipeline in Nigeria, as it looks to cut costs and sell off a range of its global assets. The sale of the selection of Nigerian assets is expected to raise around $5bn (£3bn) for Shell, according [...]
John Laing Infrastrucure Fund boosted as value and profits rise August 27, 2014 THE VALUE of FTSE 250-listed John Laing Infrastructure Fund’s (JLIF) portfolio rose by nearly five per cent in the first half of 2014, as pre-tax profits also rose and the company signalled it would continue its policy of making careful targeted acquisitions ahead. JLIF saw underlying growth of 4.95 per cent in the value of [...]
City Moves for 28 August 2014 | Who’s switching jobs August 27, 2014 Etoro The social investment network has appointed Paul Chrimes as UK managing director. He was previously chief operating officer at Swissquote. Chrimes has also held senior positions at E*TRADE, notably as chief executive of the UK company and senior vice-president of its international business. Polar Capital Holdings The specialist investment manager has announced that Guy [...]
Best of the Brokers for 28 August 2014 August 27, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com JAMES FISHER Investec has maintained its “buy” rating, wile increasing the target price to 1,500p from 1,450p. The broker believes the company has continued to deliver strong results, with a good long-term strategy driving growth forward, highlighted by recent contract wins and select [...]
London Report: Petrofac buoys FTSE but poor store data weighs on market August 27, 2014 BRITAIN’S top equity index yesterday climbed to its highest closing level in nearly two months, with oil and gas services company Petrofac buoyed by positive broker comments. However, supermarkets J Sainsbury and Tesco underperformed after weak sales data. The FTSE 100 index ended up 0.1 per cent, or 7.90 points, at 6,830.66 points. Petrofac rose [...]
New York Report: Wall Street treads water August 27, 2014 US STOCKS were little changed yesterday, with the S&P 500 creeping up to another record closing high in a lethargic session, though a number of retail stocks traded heavily after reporting results. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 15.31 points, or 0.09 per cent, to 17,122.01. The S&P 500 gained 0.1 point, or 0.01 per [...]