Laura Ashley price cutting boosts sales December 16, 2009 LAURA ASHLEY, the womenswear and home furnishings retailer famous for its floral prints, continues to defy the hardship on the high street, with sales rising nearly five per cent since August. With the latest UK sales data showing improved retail sales in London in November but sluggishness across the rest of the country, Laura Ashley [...]
FSA in derivatives clean up December 16, 2009 FINANCIAL authorities yesterday called for improved transparency on over-the-counter derivatives products as well as higher charges for non-centrally cleared trades. In a paper called “Reforming OTC Derivatives Markets”, the Treasury and the Financial Services Authority (FSA) said the financial crisis had highlighted “shortcomings in the management of counterparty credit risk and the absence of sufficient [...]
Pali International halts trading after profits fall December 16, 2009 PALI Capital, the US-based broker and investment bank, effectively shut down its London operation yesterday by suspending trading and cutting staff to a skeleton crew. Pali International applied to the FSA to register a variation in permissions, which will see its regulated activity come to a halt. Around 30 of Pali’s London employees will go, [...]
CITY VIEWS: IF BANKS PHASE OUT CHEQUES BY 2018, WILL YOU MISS THEM? December 16, 2009 GILES BRAKE | MSI GLOBAL ALLIANCE “I think cheques are useful for payment with smaller companies and services, but I certainly won’t miss them much once they’re gone. I think everyone can accept that we’re in the digital age now where everything is being done electronically. Cheques simply don’t serve the purpose that they once [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS December 16, 2009 G4S Evolution Securities yesterday said that security firm G4S’s management team presented a reassuring sales message, keeping focused on their core driver of demand, moving towards outsourcing with stable margins. They kept a “neutral” rating but moved their target price up to 252p from 230p. TOMKINS Cazenove said with recent news indicating the car industry [...]
SOVEREIGN SCORES A COUP AS IT NETS BANK GRANDEE BOB WIGLEY December 16, 2009 MY MY , but hasn’t it been an eventful few months for Aim-listed home equity release firm Sovereign Reversions? Back in August, Countrywide chairman Harry Hill and a couple of fellow dissident shareholders caused a touch of controversy by trying to oust Sovereign’s board and put the company into run-off by sending out pre-ticked proxy [...]
NatEx brings in Tube boss December 16, 2009 TROUBLED train and bus operator National Express has taken on a new chief executive to steer its recovery. National Express, which has completed a controversial £360m cash call, said Dean Finch, the chief executive of London Underground contractor Tube Lines, will take up his post early next spring. National Express will hope Finch, who worked [...]
MAGICAL DEAL December 16, 2009 British film company Pinewood Shepperton will push into Asia after signing an agreement with the Malaysian government to develop a studio in the south of the country. The firm, whose UK base was used for the Harry Potter films, said the deal with state-owned Khazanah Nasional Berhad would yield consultancy and licensing fees.
Intel sued by US regulators over anticompetitive tactics December 16, 2009 INTEL, the world’s biggest computer chipmaker, was sued by US regulator the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) yesterday, for deliberately stifling competition. The FTC alleged Intel used its market dominance in efforts to shut out rivals by cutting off their access to the marketplace and denying consumers of their choice among competing microchips and lower prices. [...]
Punch warns of renewed profits slide December 16, 2009 PUNCH Taverns has warned that profits will be hit again after reporting a fall in sales at its managed pubs in the past four months. The company, which has a net debt of £3.3bn, said that looming VAT rises and the continuing affect on trade of the recession were taking their toll. It has been [...]