BG Group remains resilient despite weak gas prices hitting first quarter April 29, 2010 Gas producer BG Group delivered improved quarterly output and underlying profits yesterday even though weak gas prices took a toll on its bottom line. The British group reported a five per cent fall in first-quarter net profit to $960m (£626.7m) as a glut in the global gas market hit gas prices, but underlying profits rose, [...]
ENI to approve EDF entry into South Stream April 29, 2010 Eni should approve French utility EDF’s entry to its South Stream gas pipeline venture within weeks, giving a boost to the mammoth project which had appeared to be stalling as gas prices plunged. Eni chief executive Paolo Scaroni yesterday said the allocation of a stake to EDF did not necessarily have to be equally split [...]
William Hill is confident as online surges April 29, 2010 BRITAIN’S second-biggest bookmaker William Hill said it had made an encouraging start to the year, boosted by strong online sales, and was confident of meeting its full-year forecasts. William Hill, which has around 2,300 betting shops in Britain and Ireland, said in a trading statement for the 13 weeks to the end of March that [...]
Asia boosts Unilever’s profit April 29, 2010 CONSUMER goods giant Unilever’s drive to increase volume growth paid off for the fourth quarter in a row as it beat forecasts with a rise in underlying sales in early 2010, with a boost from strong emerging market growth. Unilever, which makes Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, Knorr soup and Dove soap, said yesterday that [...]
Procter & Gamble quarterly earnings smash forecasts on emerging markets April 29, 2010 Procter & Gamble posted a higher profit than it anticipated, helped by growth in developing markets and its biggest volume gain in four-and-a-half years, and it raised the low end of its fiscal-year earnings outlook. The world’s largest household products company said profit fell to $2.59bn (£1.69bn), or 83 cents per share, in the third [...]
Pernod Ricard bullish for 2010 as duty-free thrives April 29, 2010 FRENCH drinks group Pernod Ricard lifted its full-year profit target as it posted third-quarter sales above forecasts and said key markets such as the United States, Russia as well as duty free had improved. Pernod’s comparable third-quarter sales in North and South America combined rose three per cent, in Asia and the rest of the [...]
ANALYST VIEWS:?HOW DO YOU RATE WILLIAM HILL’S PERFORMANCE? April 29, 2010 NIGEL PARSON | EVOLUTION “This is a real self-help agenda situation. The key to William Hill is online because that is where the business is excelling at the moment. And the key performance indicator measure for that is very good. It is also just about to step up its marketing for the World Cup.” GEETANJALI [...]
Galiform’s revenues pick up as it cuts property debt April 29, 2010 BRITISH kitchen supplier Galiform reported a pick up in trading following a weather-hit slow start to the year, and said it had cut its property liabilities by £18m. The owner of Howden Joinery, which supplies kitchen units to small builders from over 450 depots, said yesterday sales rose 0.5 per cent on a same depot [...]
Whitbread boosted by Premier Inn chain April 29, 2010 Britain’s biggest hotel operator Whitbread reported a rise in full-year pre-tax profit as its Premier Inn hotel chain attracted holidaymakers by offering rooms for as little as £29 a night. Whitbread, which also owns Costa Coffee and the Beefeater and Brewers Fayre pub restaurant chains, introduced new pricing initiatives to lure leisure customers to Premier [...]
London is key to Travelodge’s rapid growth ambitions April 29, 2010 TRAVELODGE’S London hotels helped the firm reap an eight per cent rise in revenue for the first quarter of this year. Hotels in the capital saw a surge in revenue of 16 per cent, compared to just four per cent across the rest of the country. The firm says it is now on track to [...]