Punch closing in on £2.3bn deal with creditors June 26, 2014 PUB OPERATOR Punch Taverns is close to securing a £2.3bn restructuring deal with its lenders after it reached an agreement with its largest group of bondholders yesterday. The new accord is closing in due to Punch’s agreement to offer a debt-for-equity swap that could give control of the company to noteholders. “Junior notes would be [...]
Standard Chartered slips again as financial markets hurt profits June 26, 2014 Standard Chartered’s profits are down 20 per cent on the first half of last year, the emerging markets specialist warned yesterday. Its financial markets arm has performed poorly, though growth in Africa and China is supporting profits, the lender said. After coming through the financial crisis with record profits, thanks to its lack of exposure to the [...]
Big six energy firms face probe over claims of profiteering June 26, 2014 Energy watchdog Ofgem has referred the big six energy suppliers to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), over claims of profiteering. Ofgem fired the starting gun on the investigation yesterday after politicians and consumers raised repeated concerns that the big six companies are not competitive enough and have been failing to offer their customers fair [...]
David Cameron unapologetic about tough stance on Jean-Claude Juncker June 26, 2014 Prime Minister David Cameron has said he is “unapologetic” about the tough stance he has taken in opposing Jean-Claude Juncker as a candidate for the top job in Europe. Speaking to journalists ahead of a key summit in Belgium last night Cameron said: “I am completely unapologetic about standing up for an important principle in [...]
Alibaba picks NYSE over Nasdaq June 26, 2014 CHINESE e-commerce group Alibaba has decided to list on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) where it is expected to raise up to $20bn (£11.7bn) in one of the largest US technology floats. Alibaba, which handles over 80 per cent of online retail transactions in the world’s second-largest economy, will list under the ticker “BABA” [...]
Mood on the high street hits nine-year high June 26, 2014 CONSUMER confidence in the UK has swelled to the highest levels in nine years, with sentiment continuing to improve as the recovery rolls on, according to a major survey. GfK’s latest survey of consumers, announced this morning, has risen back into positive territory for the first time since 2005, ending almost a decade of negativity. [...]
Carphone Warehouse and Dixons deliver rise in profits ahead of £3.7bn tie-up June 26, 2014 High street stalwarts Dixons and Carphone Warehouse both revealed strong results yesterday ahead of their £3.7bn merger later this year. The owner of Currys and PC World reported an underlying profit before tax of £166.2m in the year to 30 April – up 10 per cent on the previous year. Chief executive Sebastian James said [...]
Analyst Views: Do Dixons’ results bode well for its merger with Carphone Warehouse? June 26, 2014 KATE CALVERT | INVESTEC The results confirmed the business remains in great shape ahead of the proposed Carphone merger… We see strategic logic in the merger given the way the industry is moving, with increasing convergence in technologies and interconnectivity. We maintain our ‘buy’ rating. JOHN CUMMINS | WH IRELAND The prelims read well, demonstrating [...]
Barclays’ Antony Jenkins under fire as share price plunges 6.52 per cent June 26, 2014 Barclays shares dived yesterday as shareholders panicked that the lender could face another huge legal bill over claims it lied to investors using its dark pool trading facilities. It is the latest in a series of scandals hitting the bank, and these claims are particularly damaging as the alleged wrongdoing occurred on the [...]
What is a dark pool? And what is Barclays accused of? June 26, 2014 Q What is a dark pool? A Dark pools are private exchanges where access to transactions is tightly limited, and information on the trades is not made publicly available. Q Why would anyone use that? Are they popular? A They are increasingly popular – around 40 per cent of US equity trades go [...]