What you need to know before the open February 26, 2014 Markets are set to open mixed this morning ahead of UK GDP data, and with China fears pulling down metal prices. US markets finished a touch lower yesterday, but have weathered well the string of unimpressive data the country’s seen. Over in Asia, the Nikkei came down from a 4-week high, tainted by US data, [...]
Petrofac sees modest growth but reiterates cautious outlook February 26, 2014 Petrofac saw modest growth in net profit last year, up three per cent to $650m (£390m). But the oil and gas services firm expects little growth if any this year before heading back to increased earnings in 2015. The British company says it expects to deliver “flat to modest growth” in net profit in 2014. [...]
ITV profits boom after best on-screen performance for a decade February 26, 2014 Broadcaster ITV has reported a jump in profits before tax of 30 per cent to £435m for the year ended 31 December. 2013 marked the fourth year in a row of double digit profit gains for the company. Growth in online, pay & interactive of 16 per cent drove broadcast and online revenues up by [...]
Asian shares flat as investors look to Yellen testimony February 26, 2014 Asian markets are flatlining in the wake of a relatively calm day on Wall Street and a lack of significant economic data. Investors are remaining cautious ahead of Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen's testimony on Thursday. Markets will also be looking to whether the People's Bank of China will undertake further market reforms and seek [...]
Tesco retreats as Clarke puts the brakes on February 25, 2014 Supermarket pulls out of the space race with plans to slash spending and cut prices TESCO’S chief executive pledged yesterday to put the brakes on its UK expansion and spend £200m slashing prices as Britain’s biggest grocer seeks to revive sales and win back falling market share. Speaking at an investor conference, Philip Clarke laid [...]
Bid to be British: £2.5m starting price for UK visa February 25, 2014 THE GOVERNMENT is considering an auction-style visa scheme which would offer wealthy international investors the chance to bid for entry to the UK. The idea has already been heavily criticised by immigration lawyers: Nick Rollason, head of business immigration at Kingsley Napley, warned it would create an “ebay culture” and leave a bad taste in [...]
Prime time: Amazon ups subscription costs as LoveFilm is phased out February 25, 2014 AMAZON is gambling on the success of its one-day delivery service Prime, by rolling out a more expensive product that includes LoveFilm Instant. Prime Instant Video launches today in the UK and went live in the US in 2011, where it costs $79 per year. UK subscribers will have to pay £79 for the combined [...]
Blow to Salmond as North Sea exploration dries up February 25, 2014 THE UK oil and gas industry is facing its biggest challenge in 50 years due to a steep decline in exploration, according to a new report. In its Activity Survey 2014, industry body Oil & Gas UK cites government figures that show only 15 exploration wells were drilled in 2013, down from 44 in 2008. [...]
Lloyds sale may be put on hold February 25, 2014 THE TREASURY could delay the next tranche of share sales in part-nationalised bank Lloyds, following advice from UK Financial Investments. Market volatility and a slower recovery for the bank than had been expected may delay the sale until the autumn, the BBC reported last night. The long-awaited return to full privatisation of the bank has [...]
Credit Suisse hit over tax evasion February 25, 2014 BANKING giant Credit Suisse has been accused of helping its American customers evade taxes, in a US Senate report released yesterday. Senators Carl Levin and John McCain accused the bank of using “cloak-and-dagger schemes” which included setting up a branch in a Swiss airport for over 10,000 US accounts and falsifying visa applications. Credit Suisse [...]