Eurotunnel profits down after weather chaos March 9, 2010 EUROTUNNEL’S profits for last year were hit by snow disruption to services, the company said. The Channel Tunnel operator posted a profit of 1.5m euros (£1.36m) for 2009, down from 44m euros in 2008. Eurostar train services timetables were badly hit in December when snow played havoc with timetables. And a fire in September 2008 [...]
City hits out at speculation ban March 8, 2010 CONTROVERSIAL proposals to impose strict curbs on speculators using credit default swaps to bet against troubled states like Greece were yesterday widely slammed by the City as misguided and unworkable. Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou will today meet with US President Barack Obama to drum up support for his campaign, after he claimed at the [...]
Readers: we back the Tories March 8, 2010 AN outright Conservative victory at the next general election would be best for the British economy, according to the inaugural poll of City A.M.’s readers. Seventy-three per cent of panellists on the City A.M./PHI?Panel said the Tories were the best party to get the economy back on track. Just ten per cent of respondents wanted [...]
No change in FSA bank law March 8, 2010 THE Financial Services Authority (FSA) will not immediately increase the liquidity requirement for banks. The regulatory body said it will wait until results for the first two quarters of 2010 are available before “tightening the screws” on banks. The statement said: “The FSA believes that it would be premature to increase liquidity requirements across the [...]
Global house prices still far too high March 8, 2010 IF you want to find a really cheap house, the best place to go is Detroit, home to America’s crumbling car industry. One in five properties lies empty; the city appears to be in terminal decline, its population dwindling by the day, hit by an exodus of unemployed and despondent citizens desperate for better prospects [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING March 8, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES C&W ARM EYES ASIA EXPANSION AFTER LISTING Cable & Wireless’s UK business is stepping up its efforts to achieve growth in emerging markets as it secures a stock market listing later this month. The business, called C&W Worldwide, will focus on opportunities in Asia, Jim Marsh, its chief executive, told the Financial Times [...]
MPs slam venture funding March 8, 2010 THE government’s track record for investing in small businesses came under fire yesterday by the Committee of Public Accounts. A report by the Committee said that the government’s management of its venture capital funding initiative for young businesses with prospects for growth needed improvement. Some of the concerns listed by chairman Edward Leigh included a [...]
Brazil ups heat in US trade war March 8, 2010 Brazil moved yesterday to hike import tariffs on a range of US goods, which could spark a trade war with America over cotton subsidies. The decision takes effect next month, starting a 30-day period during which US and Brazilian officials will attempt to negotiate a solution to the dispute. The moves comes after the matter [...]
Pension deficits fell in 2009 March 8, 2010 Pension deficits fell among UK firms during 2009, but the overall improvement masks yawning liabilities at some notable names including British Airways, research to be published today will show. The report by consultants Hymans Robertson on the ability of FTSE 350 companies to support their pension schemes shows the median deficit fell to 6p per [...]
Guy Dawson joins up with Red Knights March 8, 2010 CITY stalwart Guy Dawson will advise a string of wealthy backers on their bid to wrest control of Manchester United. The Nomura banker, who sold his Tricorn Partners advisory firm to the Japanese bank and now works there, will advise a group of United fans who plan to buy the club for £1.25bn. Dawson advised [...]