China now has five of the world’s 10 biggest companies May 7, 2014 THREE Chinese behemoths top this year’s list of the world’s biggest public firms, while no European companies remain in the top ten, a dramatic signal of a changing world economy. The top spots are taken by the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), Agricultural Bank of China and China Construction Bank. The country is [...]
Shareholders revolt over pay at Reckitt and Ocado May 7, 2014 OCADO and Reckitt Benckiser have become the latest companies to suffer an investor backlash over pay for the most senior staff. About 20 per cent of investors in the online grocer voted against the remuneration report while 13 per cent opposed Ocado’s pay policy. A person familiar with the situation said Ocado’s board had consulted [...]
Yellen signals an end to stimulus by this autumn May 7, 2014 FEDERAL Reserve chair Janet Yellen confirmed yesterday that a continuing US recovery would mean an end to the country’s quantitative easing (QE) programme this autumn. Though the Fed appears to be committed to trimming QE purchases by $10bn (£5.9bn) each month, the central bank has previously been reluctant to lay down an official timeline for [...]
Merged coffee colossuses aim to lead market May 7, 2014 MONDELEZ International and DE Master Blenders 1753 are set to merge their coffee businesses, with DE’s parent company in control, bringing the world’s second and third largest coffee firms together. Mondelez said that the new venture would be the “world’s leading pure-play coffee company,” a veiled nod towards Nestle, the market’s largest force by sales. [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 08 May 2014 May 7, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Former chancellors slam Help to Buy Three former chancellors of the exchequer have urged George Osborne to rethink his Help to Buy programme, with the OECD also calling on the government to scale back the mortgage support scheme. Lord Lawson, Lord Lamont and Alistair Darling – all predecessors of Osborne at the Treasury [...]
Myners: Co-op insiders must accept change May 7, 2014 THE CO-OP Group’s directors need to be swept out and replaced with experienced business people if the group is to begin to turn itself around, Lord Myners said in a strongly worded report published yesterday. But the peer fears that only Co-op insiders will get a vote on shaking up governance at this month’s annual [...]
Brokers Oriel snapped up by US firm Stifel May 7, 2014 A LONG-rumoured takeover of London stockbroking firm Oriel Securities is expected to be announced this morning, City A.M. understands. Around 100 of Oriel’s employees were briefed yesterday afternoon about the firm’s agreed takeover by US brokerage and investment banking group Stifel Financial. The deal is reportedly worth around £35m to Oriel, though not all of [...]
HSBC’s profits plunge despite tough cost cuts May 7, 2014 DIVING investment bank profits dragged down HSBC’s performance in the first quarter, the bank’s financial results showed yesterday. The UK-based lender’s profits came in at $6.79bn (£4bn), down 20 per cent on the same period of 2013 despite tough cost-cutting measures. Revenues fell 8.3 per cent to $15.88bn, outstripping the 5.3 per cent fall in [...]
Bottom Line: Bank’s overhaul has further to go May 7, 2014 HSBC’S patchwork of asset sales, writedowns and restructuring efforts over the past three years has made the bank a safer place to invest, boss Stuart Gulliver reckons, even if the cuts give the regular updates a confusing ruffled appearance, with impairments and flattering charges making comparisons each quarter less meaningful. For example, a 32 per [...]
SocGen hit by Russian exposures May 7, 2014 GIANT French bank Societe Generale slashed its Russian goodwill assets by €525m (£430.7m) yesterday over political uncertainty around the Ukraine crisis. Profits fell 13.3 per cent as a result, with the bank reporting a net income of €315m for the quarter. However, investors were unflustered as the bank’s underlying profits came in almost exactly as forecast. [...]