The UK’s oil and gas paradox February 25, 2014 As the UK’s oil and gas resources continue to be at the centre of the political debate on Scottish independence, a new report by Oil & Gas UK warns that the industry is facing its biggest challenge in 50 years, due to a steep decline in exploration wells. In its Activity Survey 2014, the industry [...]
Former Asos director to head Boohoo for £500m IPO February 25, 2014 Ex-Asos director Peter Williams is to become chairman of Boohoo.com – a rival online fashion store – as it finalises listing plans valuing it at £500m, Sky News understands. Williams, a seasoned retailer who left the Asos board last year, is to take the reins as the company prepares to float on the stock market. [...]
Mortgage approvals skyrocket to 76-month high February 25, 2014 Mortgage approvals have skyrocketed by 57 per cent year-on-year to a 76-month high in January, according to the British Bankers Association (BBA). Approvals for house purchases leapt to 49,972 in January from 47,086 in December. The numbers follow a stream of data showing a sustained burst of activity in the UK housing market. In 2013, [...]
Chart: British women take more sick days than men February 25, 2014 It seems we're becoming more willing to soldier on. Over the past 20 years, we've been taking less and less time off work for sickness, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics. The average sick days taken per worker has fallen from 7.2 in 1993 to 4.4 in 2013. But women still take [...]
MtGox’s mysterious website update February 25, 2014 Some keen eyes have spotted this change to the source code of MtGox's homepage. The website belongs to the world's largest Bitcoin exchange, which is thought to be facing some serious insolvency problems. An unverified document suggests that the company – originally a trading exchange for Magic: The Gathering cards – has lost as much [...]
3 ways corporate Britain rode out the financial crisis February 25, 2014 With the springs of economic recovery in the air, and resilient stock markets and burgeoning M&A deals becoming the norm, 2014 could be the year when the fug of the financial crisis finally lifts for good. It’s too early to tell what economic historians will write about the financial crisis era in decade to come, [...]
UBM and De La Rue see shares fall after director upheaval February 25, 2014 Directorate changes are seeing shares slide this morning. Media company UBM announced this morning that Tim Cobbold has been appointed as its new chief executive, ending its five-month search for someone to replace David Levin. Shares lost almost one per cent at the open and are now down around 0.5 per cent. Roddy Davidson, analyst [...]
BlackBerry launches the $200 Jakarta in Barcelona February 25, 2014 BlackBerry has announced the launch of BlackBerry Jakarta, its first phone made in partnership with Foxconn, at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. There was some initial confusion as to the name of the device when the company said pictures of the Z3 would be out soon. BlackBerry CEO John Chen told the Congress: We’re [...]
St James’s Place eyes up Asian business as profits jump February 25, 2014 Wealth management group St James’s Place has announced a 42 per cent increase in profit before shareholder tax to £190.7m in 2013. The FTSE 250 firm saw total new single investment rise 22 per cent to £7.2bn, with funds under management up 27 per cent to £44.3bn. It said its full-year dividend increased 50 per [...]
What you need to know before the open February 25, 2014 European markets are set for a subdued start today, taking a breather after the rally seen over the past three weeks. Sentiment remains bullish, though, with several key indices hitting key levels. The FTSE 100, DAX and CAC are all expected lower at the open. A positive day on Wall Street yesterday, along with better-than-expected [...]