Pernod hit by weak trading in Eurozone September 2, 2010 FRENCH spirits giant Pernod Ricard said it expected a good year as emerging markets fuelled sales rises – but the upbeat statement failed to impress investors yesterday. Pernod posted net profit of €951m (£791.6m) for the year to the end of June, up one per cent on a year earlier. But shares in the world’s [...]
CARLUCCIO’S SOLD IN £90m DUBAI DEAL September 2, 2010 Italian restaurant chain Carluccio’s yesterday agreed to a £90.3m takeover by Middle Eastern retail giant Landmark Group. Dubai-headquartered Landmark has offered 142p a share in cash for Carluccio’s, which has 47 restaurants and food shops in the UK. Landmark plans to keep on Carluccio’s existing management team, including chief executive Simon Kossoff and chairman Stephen [...]
DSG nets a World Cup boost September 2, 2010 DSG International said yesterday its total group sales were up three per cent after a boost from World Cup TV purchases and the success of the iPad. In an update on trading for the 12 weeks to 24 July the company, which owns Currys and PC World, said its online sales had surged by 12 [...]
CITY VIEWS: HAS APPLE SPREAD ITSELF TOO THIN BY MOVING INTO TV PRODUCTS September 2, 2010 BARTOSZ WOJTOWICZ | NOMURA “I’m perfectly happy with Apple expanding, and think they get it right a lot of the time. I would love to have an iPhone, but my mobile phone network won’t offer them for another three months, so I’m stuck with my old phone.” JIMMY SMALES | COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA “I [...]
Restaurant Group profit surges September 2, 2010 The Restaurant Group – which owns Garfunkel’s, Chiquito, Frankie & Benny’s – yesterday reported an upturn in profit despite the ash cloud crisis which hit its airport concessions. It saw its pre-tax profit rise 13 per cent to £24.6m in the six months to July. The company raised its interim dividend ten per cent to [...]
Zara launches online stores September 2, 2010 Zara yesterday launched its first online stores. The clothes chain will sell garments at identical prices to stores, charging £3.95 for home delivery. Ordered items can be picked up free of charge at shops. The label’s owner Inditex, the world’s biggest clothing retailer by sales, has launched Zara online in Britain, Spain, Portugal, France, Italy [...]
Cold winter boosts Gazprom September 2, 2010 RUSSIA’S Gazprom, the world’s biggest gas producer, beat forecasts for first-quarter sales and profit, as a surge in domestic revenues offset a sharp drop in prices to European customers. Gazprom supplies a quarter of the European Union’s gas needs, but economic weakness has slashed demand, and some customers there have secured lower prices on long-term [...]
AIG’s float of Asian unit looms as files application with Hong Kong Exchange September 2, 2010 AMERICAN International Group (AIG)?filed an application yesterday with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to list its Asian life insurance unit, AIA Group. The application brings bailed-out AIG a step closer to AIA’s initial public offering (IPO), which is expected to raise about $15bn (£9.7bn). The move is also a key part of AIG’s restructuring. The [...]
Statoil plans spin-off of its fuel station business September 2, 2010 NORWEGIAN oil company Statoil is readying a fourth-quarter flotation of its international chain of gas stations, joining the industry trend to focus on more lucrative upstream operations. The retail division’s listing on the Oslo stock exchange will test the appetite for new share offerings in Norway along with the expected IPO of insurance group Gjensidige [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS September 2, 2010 Signia Wealth The wealth manager has hired Mark Elliott as managing director. Elliott is joining the family-run firm from Barclays Wealth, where he established the financial institutions group and professional practices business in 2007. Before this he worked for private bank Coutts as group head for the executive team and as group head for the [...]