Macarthur rejects Peabody offer April 7, 2010 US Coalminer Peabody Energy may have to increase its bid for Macarthur Coal by about 14 per cent, after the Australian miner rejected its sweetened $3.27bn ($3.27bn) bid. Peabody Energy said it is still trying to woo the top shareholders and the board of Macarthur Coal although it declined to comment on whether Peabody would [...]
Morgan Keegan on fraud charge April 7, 2010 US regulators yesterday charged brokerage and investment banking group Morgan Keegan with fraud for overstating the value of subprime mortgages in its mutual funds, resulting in more than $1bn (£657m) of investor losses. The charges, brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, also involved two individuals at the firm, [...]
Finance site appoints non-exec April 7, 2010 Money Dashboard has appointed a new non-executive director in the run up to its launch. Laurie Dempster, a serial entrepreneur and former business controller in the IFA sector, has joined the company as a non-executive director. He joins chairman Stuart Sinclair, the former chief executive of Tesco Personal Finance, and non-executive director David Robinson, who [...]
BP facing row with investors over pay plans April 7, 2010 PIRC and the ABI, two of Britain’s most influential shareholder groups, yesterday sounded the alarm over executive pay at oil major BP, raising the prospect of another embarrassing showdown with shareholders. Investors and industry groups have become increasingly vocal in their opposition to big pay deals for executives since the global financial crisis began. BP, [...]
British Airways sees dip in passenger numbers after March cabin crew strike April 7, 2010 BRITISH Airways saw a double-digit drop in passenger numbers in March after the airline faced disruption from seven days of strikes by cabin crew. Passenger traffic dipped by 11.4 per cent last month, while passenger capacity dropped 13.7 per cent. BA said the walkout affected traffic numbers, which are measured in revenue per passenger kilometre [...]
Quake in Chile takes toll on Beazley profit April 7, 2010 LLOYD’S of London insurer Beazley yesterday said it expects to pay out as much as $75m (£49m) in claims following February’s earthquake in Chile. Analysts said the losses would reduce the Dublin-based insurer’s pre-tax profit for the year by £10m to £142m, although the group’s exposure to the event was minimal compared to its peers. [...]
Overall impact will be minor April 7, 2010 LIKE other insurers, Beazley benefited from an unusually quiet year for catastrophes in 2009. With the global economy crumbling, perhaps the gods decided to spare the world from natural disasters. The tragic Chilean earthquake was proof that the benign period was over. Thanks to its diversification, however, Beazley is set to suffer less than rivals, [...]
MPs slam the BBC for being too secretive April 7, 2010 THE BBC has been slammed for being too secretive over its finances by the Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC). A report by MPs said the BBC must be held to account over its spending after it was criticised for splashing out vast sums on building projects and staffing levels at events including the World Cup [...]
ANALYSTS TAKE THEIR GAMBLE ON WORLD CUP April 7, 2010 WORLD Cup fever is starting to grip the City in earnest ahead of the summer in South Africa, as evidenced by the latest analysts to have a pop at the business impact of the tournament. Sanford Bernstein’s Trevor Stirling, Joao Valli and Melissa Yates yesterday released a missive on the effects of the World Cup [...]
CITY EYE April 7, 2010 Birdspotters Anders Price and David Lindo, founders of the Bird Study Group, look out over a drab grey City yesterday through their binoculars, from the dizzying heights of the top of Tower 42. The Heron Tower, seen in the background, is nearing completion.