Tui’s bookings and prices rise March 26, 2014 Tui Travel, Europe’s biggest tour operator by revenues, said bookings for its key summer period were progressing in line with its expectations, giving it confidence it would meet a target for annual profit growth of seven to 10 per cent. The group, which owns the Thomson and First Choice holiday brands, said average summer holiday [...]
Interserve replaces auditor March 26, 2014 Outsourcing group Interserve has ditched Deloitte as its auditor and hired Grant Thornton in its place. FTSE 250-listed Interserve decided to end its 15-year relationship with Big Four auditor Deloitte after a competitive tender. The contract is the latest coup for Grant Thornton, which became the auditor of a FTSE 100 firm for the first [...]
BG Group wins Myanmar rights March 26, 2014 BG Group yesterday revealed plans to explore for oil and gas off the coast of Myanmar later this year, in line with its plan to enter a new geological basin each year. EU sanctions against Myanamar were permanently lifted last year, two and a half decades after a military regime overruled the election of Aung [...]
City Moves for 27 March 2014 | Who’s switching jobs March 26, 2014 Hanson Asset Management The asset management firm has announced the appointment of Jonathan Arthur as head of investment management. He was previously head of UK equities at UBS Private Wealth. KPMG The professional services firm has appointed Dan Roman to lead its UK hedge funds practice. He joined the hedge funds tax practice three years ago from EY, [...]
Best of the Brokers for 27 March 2014 March 26, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com ITV UBS has downgraded the broadcaster from “buy” to “neutral” and lowered its target from 230p to 210p. The broker thinks the market is now pricing in ITV’s balance sheet restructuring and pay-TV growth, though the World Cup’s advertising boost could lift the shares. [...]
London Report: FTSE 100 ends flat after Lloyds’ drop weighs index down March 26, 2014 SHARES in Lloyds plunged 4.9 per cent yesterday after the government sold a stake in the lender at a discount to its stock price, and held back the UK’s blue chip equity index. The FTSE 100 index, which at one stage rose as much as 0.6 per cent, ended up by just 0.41 points, flat [...]
New York Report: Wall St hit as tech stocks fall March 26, 2014 US stocks fell yesterday, led by losses in the technology and materials sectors, as geopolitical concerns rose after the US and the EU agreed to work together on tougher sanctions on Russia. Trading remained choppy with US stocks mostly positive in the morning after US economic data pointed to improving conditions. But a sharp fall [...]
Why HSBC’s feeling excited about UK house building March 26, 2014 HSBC has issued a bullish note today on housebuilders explaining why – despite the sector having already trebled in value since 2011 and despite fears overs the impact of future interest rate hikes and the 2015 general election – it still remains upbeat on the sector. The bank has an overweight rating on eight of [...]
Trade deal must safeguard consumers, says Obama March 26, 2014 Barack Obama has been speaking this afternoon about the prospective trade deal between the US and EU, which would make it easier for the US to export gas to Europe. Having met with EU leaders in Brussels, the US president’s been addressing a news conference, trying to quell concerns he may support a transatlantic trade [...]
How Facebook built a $1bn business in 16 months March 26, 2014 Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg yesterday described his purchase of Oculus VR as key in jumping onto virtual reality which he says will become a part of everyday life and be the “next major computing platform that will come after mobile.” To find out just how quickly Facebook can capitalise on a new business, it’s [...]