F&C trust buying in Aberdeen April 14, 2014 F&C Commercial Property Trust yesterday said it was on course to buy four office blocks in Aberdeen. The trust, which yesterday revealed results showing it had beaten its benchmark last year, paid £65m for the first two blocks and will pay another £30.4m this month for the second two. The trust also said it was [...]
Land Rover is a 4 x soar with new Virgin tie-up April 14, 2014 WE ALL know Land Rover is an all terrain vehicle, but now the car-maker is taking things one giant leap further by becoming Virgin Galactic’s first official partner. So does this mean our favourite Chelsea Tractors are to become moon buggies as well? Will they be sprouting wings and taking to the skies themselves? No, it [...]
The Lord Mayor brings Twelfth Night back to Middle Temple April 14, 2014 WEALTH management firm Saunderson House managed to bag the best seat in the hall last night at the Lord Mayor’s Fund Shakespeare charity dinner in Middle Temple Hall. The firm was sitting at “Twelfth Night Table” – most apt considering Middle Temple is thought to be the place that particular Shakespeare number was first performed. [...]
Peugeot cuts models to try to restart profits April 14, 2014 PSA PEUGEOT Citroen, the loss-making French car company, is slashing the number of models it makes from 45 to 26 as part of its recovery plan. The car firm, which signed a €3bn (£2.5bn) rescue deal with Chinese group Dongfeng and the French government in February, said it will “take the example and reference of [...]
Linklaters partner joins Fresnillo board as Lord Cairns steps down April 14, 2014 A SENIOR partner at magic circle law firm Linklaters will join the board of Mexico-focused miner Fresnillo, replacing Lord Cairns. Cairns plans to step down at the FTSE 100-quoted miner’s annual meeting in May. “I should like to take this opportunity to thank Lord Cairns for his significant contribution to the board over the past [...]
Total to go ahead with Angolan oil project after slashing costs April 14, 2014 FRENCH energy giant Total yesterday said it has decided to develop an offshore project in Angola, after reducing costs to $16bn (£9.6bn). The project had been repeatedly delayed, as oil companies cut back on investments and return cash to shareholders. But $4bn has been knocked off the cost of the oil field, which is now [...]
Sharp drops to five-month low on reports of £1.2bn share issue April 14, 2014 CONSUMER electronics firm Sharp saw shares slump yesterday morning after a local Japanese newspaper reported the company is considering issuing shares to raise around ¥200bn (£1.2bn) to bolster its finances. The Osaka-based company said in a statement on Sunday that it was considering a variety of possibilities to boost its capital but had made no [...]
City Moves for 15 April 2014 | Who’s switching jobs April 14, 2014 Mount Anvil The property developer has appointed Jon Hall as sales and marketing director. He joins from Berkeley Homes, where he has been a sales and marketing director since 2011. Hall has also held roles at St Modwen Properties. PwC Ian Oakley-Smith has been appointed head of PwC’s charity sector team in the UK. He [...]
Nigeria’s Seplat starts trading April 14, 2014 Nigerian oil company Seplat started unconditional dealings on the stock exchanges in London and Lagos yesterday, having raised £300.9m in its initial public offering. The firm, which is one of the largest indigenous independent oil and gas operators in Nigeria, started conditional dealing last week. It plans to use part of the proceeds to buy [...]
SMS buys energy firm for £14m April 14, 2014 Smart Metering Systems, the Aim-listed electricity metering services company, yesterday said it has bought Utility Partnership for £14m. Utility Partnership is a manager of electricity meters and provider of meter installation, data management and energy management services. The deal is expected to be immediately earnings-accretive. The firm also said that Scottish Power executive Willie MacDiarmid [...]