Ian Tyler made minder for G4S March 3, 2014 FORMER Balfour Beatty boss Ian Tyler has been appointed as a £500-a-day “minder” for troubled outsourcer G4S. Tyler, soon to become chair at Cairn Energy, is among a group of Crown Representatives being announced today as part of a Whitehall bid to improve public procurement. G4S is at the centre of an investigation by the [...]
Robust growth in euro industry as UK improves March 3, 2014 MANUFACTURERS in the Eurozone reported further solid growth in February, while UK industry continued to expand at a robust pace. The headline reading of data firm Markit’s purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for the manufacturing sector was 53.2 in the euro area this February. The figure was down slightly from 54 in January, the highest level [...]
Bank use of Funding for Lending surges but business loans drop March 3, 2014 USE OF the Funding for Lending Scheme by banks surged in the last part of 2013, with nearly half of the borrowings made so far coming in the year’s final quarter. Banks drew down £18.79bn in the final three months of the year, out of £41.92bn in the six quarters the scheme has been active. [...]
Tate & Lyle could exit FTSE 100 to make way for St James’s Place March 3, 2014 TATE & Lyle, one of the original components of the FT 30, is on the verge of being demoted from the FTSE 100 as part of its quarterly reshuffle of the index, the London Stock Exchange (LSE) said yesterday. The food ingredients company will learn its fate tomorrow night when the exchange reveals the firms [...]
Average energy spend soars by 55pc in 10 years March 3, 2014 AVERAGE household spending on energy increased by 55 per cent between 2002 and 2012, while usage dropped by 17 per cent over the period, according to data compiled by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The divergence between spending and use means that the increase in average spending is explained solely by rises in energy [...]
Labour backs stronger ties with Europe in bid to grow economy March 3, 2014 SHADOW business secretary Chuka Umunna is set to deliver a strong message on Europe in a speech this evening, warning that “shutting ourselves off poses a huge threat to our future prosperity.” In an address to the EEF manufacturing conference, Labour’s Umunna will outline Agenda 2030, a plan focused around increasing the number of middle-income [...]
Restructure of Welbeck firms March 3, 2014 FINANCIAL services group Welbeck has filed an application to the High Court for two of its subsidiaries to be put into adminstration, the Companies Court has told City A.M. According to the court document, ReSolve, a group specialising in restructurings, is likely to be appointed as administrator. The two partners on the case are James [...]
Taxman axes VAT on British Bitcoin trades March 3, 2014 THE BRITISH taxman confirmed yesterday that Bitcoin will be exempt from VAT in the same way as other currencies, in the latest sign that finance authorities are taking the digital currency seriously. HM Revenue and Customs said that unlocking new Bitcoins in a process known as mining and trading Bitcoin for other currencies will not [...]
World’s richest made wealthier by stock surge March 3, 2014 THE WORLD’S richest men and women have had, on average, a very profitable 2013. The total wealth of billionaires is now $6.4 trillion, according to Forbes magazine – a rise of a cool $1 trillion in the space of a year, with many fortunes buoyed by the rising equity markets. There are now a record-breaking 1,645 [...]
Insurers count cost of floods as bill hits £1.2bn March 3, 2014 THE RECENT bad weather could cost UK insurers £1.2bn, according to ratings agency Fitch. Storms and flooding that hit many parts of the country in December and the early part of this year have left households, and ultimately insurers, counting the cost of the damage. The agency estimates that losses to the industry will be “manageable” [...]