Ed Miliband just beating David in Labour race September 21, 2010 Our latest YouGov/Sunday Times poll of Labour’s leadership election college shows the race is neck and neck. Six weeks ago David Miliband was leading his brother by eight points. Our poll on 7-9 September shows the two brothers are within two points of each other, with Ed Miliband narrowly ahead. YouGov asked people their first [...]
UBS forming global family office group September 21, 2010 UBS is forming a new global group for super-rich clients that will draw on expertise from its wealth management and investment banking arms, Switzerland’s biggest bank said in a memo yesterday. The new Global Family Office Group (GFO) will give the wealthiest private banking clients direct access to investment banking services, the world’s second-largest wealth [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS September 21, 2010 Advent International The private equity firm has appointed Marcello Bottoli, the ex-chief executive of Samsonite, as an adviser focusing on opportunities in the retail and consumer sectors, especially branded consumer products, fashion and luxury goods. Bottoli led Samsonite for five years up until January 2009, during which time he turned around the firm and oversaw [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS September 21, 2010 BARCLAYS Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) expects that negative operating trends will reverse and a ‘new world’ Barclays is set to deliver. The broker reiterates a “buy” rating for the bank with a 410p price target. Gradual profit and loss momentum, fluidity and execution of group strategy are key to a sustained re-rating, according to [...]
Future growth needs freedom now September 21, 2010 RICHARD WELLINGS DEPUTY EDITORIAL DIRECTOR, IEA WHEN the Soviet Union collapsed it seemed obvious that economic freedom was essential if individuals and societies were to thrive. But in the 20 years since, the enemies of liberty have fought back. The vested interests and bureaucracies that rely on big government have increasingly used environmental objectives and [...]
Global indexes offer the UK cold comfort September 21, 2010 MARC SIDWELL BUSINESS FEATURES EDITOR IN FEBRUARY this year, George Osborne gave a speech in which he vowed “to improve Britain’s global rankings for tax competitiveness and business regulation”. At least the Chancellor understands the problem. As discussed above, the latest Economic Freedom of the World report show Britain’s economic freedom declining from 2007 to [...]
Cairn Energy finds oil off Greenland September 21, 2010 OIL exploration firm Cairn Energy has found oil off the coast of Greenland. The firm, which has faced attempts by Greenpeace activists to stop it deep drilling, has two types of oil in its Alpha well. Chief executive Sir Bill Gammell said it was “extremely encouraging” to find evidence of an “active working petroleum system” [...]
UK deficit a record high for August September 21, 2010 Britain last month posted a record budget deficit for August as interest payments on index-linked gilts shot up because of higher inflation than a year ago, official data showed. The Office for Nationals Statistics (ONS) said public sector net borrowing came in at £15.302bn, well above analysts’ forecasts for a reading of £12.5bn and some [...]
Experian buys Mighty Net in £133m deal September 21, 2010 Credit information company Experian has bought US peer Mighty Net Inc for $207.5m (£133m), in a deal which Experian said would consolidate its market leading position in the United States. Mighty Net, which was founded in 1996, provides online services to US consumers interested in managing their credit behaviour. As of 30 June 2010, Mighty [...]
BHP Billiton’s Potash bid stalled by Canadian authorities September 21, 2010 HP Billiton’s $39bn (£25bn) battle to take control of Canada’s Potash Corp is expected to drag on into next year after it failed to win immediate backing from Canadian authorities. The Anglo-Australian miner, which wants to use the world’s largest fertiliser-maker as its entry into the global food industry, also said it had no plan [...]