WH Smith sees sales hit in ash cloud crisis June 8, 2010 WH Smith posted a fall in third-quarter sales as travel disruption due to the Icelandic volcanic ash cloud hit the firm’s airport business. The company said its financial position was in line with market expectations and although it was cautious about consumer spending it was confident in the outcome for the full year. WH Smith [...]
Charles Stanley raises dividend after profit rise June 8, 2010 STOCKBROKER Charles Stanley has posted a ten per cent rise in full-year adjusted pre-tax profit – helped by higher revenue from private clients, and raised its total dividend for the year by eight per cent. The company said it was too early to predict a sustained recovery, but added it was more confident about its [...]
Tesco chief Leahy to retire June 8, 2010 TESCO chief executive Sir Terry Leahy has announced that he will retire in March after 14 years leading the company. Unveiling its succession plan the retail giant said IT director Philip Clarke, 50, would take over. Leahy will be 55 when he gives over the reins of the company. Clarke is also currently responsible for [...]
Retail sales rebound after World Cup boost June 8, 2010 RETAIL sales bounced back in May – fuelled by warmer weather and TVs for the World Cup according to official figures. The British Retail Consortium said sales last month was 0.8 per cent higher than a year ago on a like-for-like basis, a big improvement on the 2.3 per cent decline recorded in April. Total [...]
Pru boss: I have (a few) regrets June 7, 2010 PRUDENTIAL chief Tidjane Thiam expressed regret over his botched attempt to buy AIA yesterday, at a fractious meeting punctuated by calls for a boardroom shake-up. Thiam, fighting for his career after Prudential was embarrassingly forced to pull out of a $35.5bn (£25bn) bid for AIG’s Far Eastern arm, stopped short of saying sorry. But chairman [...]
BP hopes to double oil captured June 7, 2010 EMBATTLED oil major BP could soon siphon off up to 20,000 barrels a day from its leaking well in the Gulf of Mexico – twice the amount it is currently collecting. US Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, who is leading the operation for the American government, said that BP could contain twice as much oil [...]
Cameron gets ready for cuts June 7, 2010 INTEREST payments on Britain’s huge debt pile will surge to £70bn in the next five years unless public spending is slashed, the Prime Minister warned yesterday. David Cameron made the shock revelation as he sought to win public backing for the toughest spending cuts in a generation. He was quoting from previously unpublished Treasury figures [...]
An intriguing plan to reform banking June 7, 2010 IF you leave your suit at a dry-cleaner, you retain ownership of the garment, even though possession has passed (temporarily) to the shop. But if you deposit £1,000 in a bank account, who owns the money? It’s still yours, held in trust by the bank, just as with the dry cleaner, right? Wrong. Ever since [...]
Markets fall on debt fears June 7, 2010 US STOCKS fell yesterday after strong German manufacturing data failed to restore investor confidence. And the euro slid to a new four year low below $1.19, while gold prices rose to just $10 below their all-time high. There is concern the US recovery is slowing, Europe’s economies are too indebted and even China’s boom may [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING June 7, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES ROCKHOPPER set for $40m CASh CALL Rockhopper, the first explorer to find oil on the Falkland Islands, is priming a £40m cash call that could be launched this week. The Aim-quoted oil company, one of three small UK wildcat explorers drilling for Falklands oil, has been working with broker Canaccord Adams to sound [...]