CITY VIEWS: WHAT IS THE FUTURE OF PENSIONS IN THE UK? July 1, 2010 ANDY DEGORSKI | DATA LOCATOR GROUP “Government pensions are not enough to live off and private pensions are struggling. I think people will start to look at investing in other places like a second property.” STEVE LAIRD | ACE GROUP “I feel lucky that my company has a good pension scheme because the state pension [...]
Pension deficit soars to £100bn in private sector July 1, 2010 THE PENSION deficit among the UK’s largest private schemes has shot up to £100bn and could get worse within the next year, according to new research. Risk management group Aon Consulting said yesterday that the government’s austerity measures could add to the woes already felt by companies sponsoring final salary schemes as short-term funding problems [...]
Debenhams sales slide in tough market July 1, 2010 DEBENHAMS said yesterday it remains cautious about consumer spending as sales dropped in the third quarter – offset by a rise in profit margins. But the retailer said that its Designers at Debenhams ranges were still performing well and predicted strong trading for the rest of the year. Like-for-like sales decreased by 0.4 per cent [...]
Diageo boosts pension with liquid gold July 1, 2010 DRINKS group Diageo has agreed a plan with its pension fund which will use up to 2.5m barrels of maturing Scotch whisky to help tackle a deficit of £862m. The defined benefit plan was agreed after a triennial valuation of the Diageo Pension Scheme last April highlighted the deficit and triggered a requirement to agree [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS July 1, 2010 Credit Suisse The investment bank has appointed Levente Kulcsar as a director and head of exchanged traded funds for Germany and Austria. He joins the firm from Commerzbank, where he was head of international sales for Comstage ETF. The firm has also promoted Annabelle Wegner to ETF specialist head for institutional clients for the same [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: DO DEBENHAMS’ FIGURES REPRESENT PROGRESS? July 1, 2010 KEITH BOWMAN | HARGREAVES LANSDOWN As with the broader market, investor nerves are being tested – same store sales have fallen, whilst management comments express caution for the consumer outlook. Nonetheless, the group’s ‘self help’ initiatives remain ongoing, while news in relation to a refinancing is positive. Debenhams appears to have a growth strategy. CAROLINE [...]
Greene King toasts profit July 1, 2010 PUB company Greene King reported a 3.8 per cent increase in full-year pre-tax profit yesterday and said it had made an encouraging start to its current fiscal year. The pub, which operates 2,472 pubs and restaurants across Britain, reported a pre-tax profit of £123m in the year to 2 May. Greene King said sales at [...]
Astra hit with antitrust fine July 1, 2010 A European Union court backed an EU antitrust decision against Anglo-Swedish drugmakerAstraZeneca yesterday, lending weight to a regulatory crackdown on firms blocking cheaper drugs coming to market. Antitrust lawyers said the ruling set a firm legal precedent for the regulator in its fight against companies suspected of preventing consumers from obtaining less expensive generic treatments. [...]
Tate & Lyle loses its taste for historic sugar-based products July 1, 2010 Tate & Lyle yesterday confirmed plans to sell its European sugar operations to American Sugar Refining for £211m, breaking a 150-year link to sugar in favour of low-calorie sweeteners offering faster growth. The privately-owned US group is buying Tate’s sugar and Golden Syrup business with a perpetual licence to use the Tate & Lyle name, [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS July 1, 2010 HMV GROUP Citigroup said that the combination of further modest HMV market share gain progress, the ongoing product mix shift, and margin recovery at Waterstone’s should allow HMV to retain a stable group earnings before interest and taxes platform. Citi issues a “buy” rating for the music retailer and said the Mama acquisition should add [...]