Merlin lines up Sunderland November 16, 2009 The backers of theme park group Merlin Entertainments are lining up John Sunderland as chairman ahead of a stock market floatation next year. Merlin’s shareholders, which include Blackstone and Dubai International Capital, have identified the former chief executive and chairman of Cadbury-Schweppes to take the firm public. Merlin Entertainments, which owns Alton Towers, Legoland and [...]
Wiseman sees profits leap November 16, 2009 Scottish dairy group Robert Wiseman Dairies has milked the most out of the collapse of Dairy Farmers Group, posting an 81.5 per cent rise in first half profit. A confident Robert Wiseman said 150m litres of milk supply had moved across to it as a direct result of dairy farmers leaving the market. That more [...]
Bernanke: we will aim for a strong dollar November 16, 2009 BEN BERNANKE, chairman of the Federal Reserve, took the unusual step of commenting on the direction of the US dollar last night, saying he was “attentive” to the currency’s ongoing slide. The Fed chairman does not normally comment on the direction of the US dollar, so Bernanke’s comments were scrutinised across global markets. The US [...]
City says FSA plan to tear up bank contracts is unlawful November 16, 2009 EX-ROYAL Bank of Scotland chairman Sir George Mathewson yesterday added to City concerns over government plans to hand the Financial Services Authority (FSA) the power to rip up bankers’ pay contracts, labelling them “dangerous”. Speaking on the BBC, Mathewson said it was “sad” to see a political move to threaten the banks even as the [...]
Intel boosts its dividend 12.5pc November 16, 2009 INTEL has raised its quarterly dividend by 12.5 per cent, citing strong growth prospects. The bullish outlook from the world’s biggest computer chip maker is another endorsement of the sustainability of the global economic recovery and the PC market. From the first quarter of 2010 Intel said it would pay a cash dividend of 15.75 [...]
Gold soars to another high November 16, 2009 GOLD surged to a new record last night, with gold futures rising to $1,144.20 (£679.50) an ounce in after hours trading. It is just one week since the cost of the precious metal smashed through the $1,100-an-ounce barrier for the first time. The price of gold has now jumped by around 10 per cent in [...]
City unveils new body to promote UK November 16, 2009 SOME of the City’s most senior figures are to join forces on a new unified body aimed at representing the interests of the UK financial services industry on a domestic and international stage. Stuart Popham, senior partner at law firm Clifford Chance, will chair the organisation, to be called TheCityUK. John Ingamells, a former political [...]
Brown says free trade still matters November 16, 2009 GORDON BROWN last night assured the City that Britain would remain a “free trading” and “internationalist” nation as he addressed the Lord Mayor’s Banquet at the Guildhall. And he said the world should continue to work together to solve economic issues. Brown said: “Can anyone today seriously believe we can tackle the recession better without [...]
Tucker sees use for CoCos November 16, 2009 CONTINGENT capital instruments are potentially an important element in banks’ recovery plans and are a form of catastrophe insurance for the banking sector if they are widely adopted, the Bank of England’s deputy governor Paul Tucker said yesterday. Speaking in Brussels, Tucker – whose remit at the Bank is financial stability – said that the [...]
US retail sales jump after consumers buy more cars November 16, 2009 AMERICANretail sales grew more than expected last month as vehicle purchases bounced back, but non-auto sales rose modestly, suggesting consumers remained too cautious to drive a robust economic recovery. Other data yesterday showed New York state manufacturing activity slowed in November for the first time in four months, further highlighting the uneven nature of economic [...]