Bank of England sticks with the status quo as rates stay on hold September 10, 2009 THE Bank of England’s monetary policy committee (MPC) unsurprisingly kept interest rates at 0.5 per cent and quantitative easing on hold at £175bn yesterday. The Bank has purchased almost £146bn worth of assets and said it expects the programme to take another two months to complete. Although there were calls last month to extend QE [...]
Suntory is in talks to snap up Orangina September 10, 2009 JAPANESEbrewer Suntory is in talks to snap up Orangina for at $2.6bn (£1.6bn) as it looks to grow oversees and offset the effects of the rapidly ageing population at home. Privately held Suntory, itself in talks to be sold to bigger rival Kirin, would likely pay more for Orangina than the $2.6bn that Blackstone and [...]
Galliford Try plans 126m rights issue September 10, 2009 CONSTRUCTION group Galliford Try yesterday announced plans for a £125.6m rights issue to raise funds for new developments and take advantage of the property sector upturn. “The rights issue proceeds will allow us to take advantage of the improved land market liquidity we are witnessing and build homes at attractive margins,” said chief executive Greg [...]
PRINCE?BAILED?OUT?BY?WAITROSE September 10, 2009 DUCHY Originals, Prince Charles’s struggling organic food company, has signed a multi-million pound exclusive licensing, manufacture and distribution deal with upmarket chain Waitrose. The deal represents a financial lifeline to the firm, which donates all its profits to charity and has struggled in the recession.
CITY VIEWS: SHOULD THE BBC BE FORCED TO SHARE THE LICENCE FEE? September 10, 2009 GRAHAM NYMAN S&H CONSULTING“The BBC is a great institution and a great brand. That may be because they get funding, but the other companies are all commercial and can find their own funds. Idon’t think we should have to pay for the iPlayer though.” MARK LOVEDAY CAPITAL EPC“I don’t think they should have to share [...]
UBS faces fine over CDO sale September 10, 2009 SWISS bank UBS has been told to set aside $35m (£21.1m) to cover a potential fine in a row over the sale of dubious quality securities, described by the bank’s employees as “crap”. The judge ruled that the bank had a case to answer against hedge fund Pursuit Partners, which claims that UBS sold it [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS September 10, 2009 WH IrelandThe stockbroker has appointed Lindsey Hamilton as head of wealth management. Hamilton brings with her a team from her previous employer Allied Irish Bank, where she led the national high net worth independent regulated sales force in the UK. “We have previously set out our intention to grow the private wealth management offering and [...]
Dutch rules to limit risk and pay at banks September 9, 2009 DUTCH banks will see their remuneration structures curbed and be required to obtain regular approval of risk strategies under a new voluntary code of self-regulation to begin on 1 January. The bank code follows a report in April on the future of the country’s banking system, after the collapse or near-collapse of a number of [...]
F&Cinvestment trust head celebrates FTSErelegation September 9, 2009 JEREMY Tigue, manager of the Foreign & Colonial Investment Trust, has taken the unusual step of welcoming the fund’s demotion from the FTSE 100 index this week. While most company bosses treat being part of the top-rank index of blue chip giants as a goal above all others, Foreign & Colonial (F&C) said Tigue has [...]
CNPC secures 30bn funding September 9, 2009 CHINA National Petroleum Corp (CNPC), parent of Asia’s largest oil and gas producer PetroChina, said yesterday it had secured a $30bn (£18.13bn) state loan to fund overseas expansion, as Beijing seeks to secure resources for the world’s fastest-growing major economy. The Chinese government, sitting on more than $2 trillion in foreign exchange reserves, has this [...]