Lottery operator Camelot announces CEO retirement and major restructuring April 29, 2014 Camelot, the group that operates the National Lottery, has announced this morning that chief executive (CEO) Dianne Thompson is retiring after 14 years in the job. The company has also unveiled restructuring plans which’ll see it split into two separate entities over the next six months – a move designed, it says, to maximise growth [...]
Portes vs Lilico: Growth figures trigger inflation wager April 29, 2014 News that UK GDP has grown by 2.3 per cent on a year-on-year basis has triggered a bet between two economists with very different outlooks. Andrew Lilico, chairman of Europe Economics, and Jonathan Portes, director of think tank Niesr, made a wager back in May of last year. The core disagreement between Lilico and Portes [...]
UK recovery picks up speed as growth hits 0.8pc April 29, 2014 A little softer than expected, but nonetheless an acceleration in UK growth. GDP growth has come in at 0.8 per cent for the first quarter of 2014, up from 0.7 per cent, according to the Office for National Statistics. Consensus forecasts suggested that we'd see even stronger growth – of 0.9 per cent – this [...]
What you need to know before the open April 29, 2014 European markets are expected to creep higher today, despite a fairly turbulent day for US markets yesterday and ongoing concerns regarding the situation in Ukraine. Sentiment remains largely positive, with economic data expected to show signs of improvement this week, but recent highs still haven’t been surpassed by markets, suggesting some underlying worries when it [...]
BP ups dividend despite profit drop April 29, 2014 As it continues to press on with its turnaround programme, BP has reported that profit fell 24 per cent to $3.2bn (£1.9bn) in the first quarter – that's slightly ahead of the $3.1bn consensus forecast, though, and on the back of weaker production. It’s upping its quarterly dividend by 8.3 per cent to 9.75 cents per ordinary [...]
Jump in Costa sales drives profit growth for Whitbread April 29, 2014 Leisure giant Whitbread has announced a boom in underlying profits before tax of 16.5 per cent to £412m for the financial year ending 26 February. Total revenue rose by a hefty 13 per cent to £2.2bn, with like-for-like sales rising by 4.2 per cent. Strong sales at both Premier Inn and Costa were significant drivers [...]
Carphone Warehouse revenue up as new stores open for business April 29, 2014 Carphone Warehouse has announced a rise in like-for-like revenue of 2.3 per cent for the 13 weeks ended 29 March. However, overall connections dropped 10 per cent thanks to the continued weakness in the prepay market. The company gained momentum from 4G services, which drove rising levels of data take-up compared to the previous period [...]
Asian markets indecisive as US imposes fresh sanctions April 29, 2014 Asian markets have been switching between gains and losses after a less than impressive day on Wall Street and the crisis in Ukraine continued to give investors reason for caution. The US has deployed more troops in eastern Europe and imposed fresh sanctions in response to Russia's activity in the region. The new sanctions target [...]
Any Other Business – 29/04 April 29, 2014 THERE was cause for celebration (and positive headlines, at last) for Barclays on Friday when its retail and business banking chief executive Curt Hess picked up the Corporate Straight Ally of the Year award at the Out in the City and G3 Magazine awards. Hess rubbed shoulders with the likes of Tom Daly and Paul [...]
City scores drug deal fee bonanza April 28, 2014 CITY investment banks could be in line for a $240m (£143m) jackpot after America’s biggest drug company confirmed it had reignited bid talks with its UK rival, opening the door for the largest ever foreign takeover of a British company. Pfizer, which makes drugs like Viagra and Centrum, unveiled an audacious bid to buy AstraZeneca, [...]