IPO failures give private equity a bloody nose February 18, 2010 THE keenly anticipated flood of initial public offerings slated for early 2010 has failed to materialise as investors become increasingly wary of over-leveraged businesses coming to market. Travelport and New Look’s pulled flotations and Merlin Entertainment’s decision to abandon its plans have set alarm bells ringing despite a clutch of other potential IPOs, including Promethean, [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS February 18, 2010 ETX Capital The financial spread betting firm has appointed John Wilson, the outgoing chief executive of the London Stock Exchange’s dark pool trading facility Baikal, as its new executive chairman. Wilson leaves following the LSE acquisition of Turquoise, having spent two years at Baikal. Meanwhile, Andrew Edwards, formerly managing director and trading director at ETX, [...]
Qantas cuts back on first class seats February 18, 2010 QANTAS Airways, Australia’s national carrier, said yesterday it would axe first class seats on all but a handful of its routes after a sharp fall in demand for premium flights in the downturn. The news came as Qantas yesterday reported a 72 per cent plunge in first half net profit to just Au$58m (£33.4m), hit [...]
CITY SET FOR HERON’S ROOM WITH A VIEW February 18, 2010 BUSINESS hotshots out to impress in the City’s culture of superlatives, take note: plans are finally afoot to find a restaurateur to take on what will soon become the venue with some of the best views over the Square Mile. Heron Tower, the 46-storey Bishopsgate glass and stainless steel giant due for completion just over [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS February 18, 2010 SEGRO The commercial property company’s prelims on 25 February will show the benefits of a strong upturn in UK industrial property values in the second half of 2009, reckons Execution Noble. Its shares are trading at a 13 per cent discount to Execution’s predicted full-year net asset value of 343p. Analyst Michael Burt rates the stock [...]
Asda to concentrate on smaller stores February 18, 2010 ASDA said it would expand into smaller format stores, open more non-food shops and slash costs to drive growth in tough markets after posting its lowest quarterly sales growth in about two years. Chief Executive Andy Bond said the chain, owned by U.S. group Wal-Mart Stores, became too focussed on promotions in 2009, which clouded [...]
Halfords expands into car servicing February 18, 2010 CAR and bike accessories retailer Halfords is expanding into car servicing after buying Nationwide Autocentres for £73.2m. The company said the ‘Halfords Autocentre’ business would be a major source of growth for the firm. In addition to Nationwide’s existing 224 sites, it is expected that Halfords open 200 new centres, creating 1,000 new jobs. Shares [...]
Tax collection costs UK firms £20bn a year February 18, 2010 TAX collection costs the UK an astonishing £20bn a year, according to new research from the Institute of Economic Affairs. It claims the UK is one of only three of the 43 most advanced economies where the cost of tax collection is not falling. The IEA called for radical tax reforms it says could reduce [...]
Public borrowing hits high as tax receipts fall February 18, 2010 THE state of the UK’s public finances got even worse in January after spending rose more than expected while tax revenues declined, according to official figures. Figures from thr Office of National Statistics (ONS) said the government borrowed another £4.3bn last month. Analysts had expected the government to repay about £2.8bn of its debts. January [...]
Ladbrokes profits slump February 18, 2010 LADBROKES was on a losing streak in 2009 with the recession leading punters to place fewer and lower bets. Pre-tax profits slumped 28 per cent to £191.3m after a tough year in which it was forced to tap shareholders for £274.6m in October. The UK’s biggest bookmaker said its 2,000 UK betting shops suffered a [...]