Aberdeen set to benefit as mergers near November 30, 2009 ABERDEEN Asset Management yesterday predicted further consolidation in the fund management sector next year as improving stock markets encouraged investors back to equities. Chief executive Martin Gilbert described the company’s performance over the year to the end of September as “solid” in what had been months of unprecedented turbulence. The company saw an exodus of [...]
Irish banks ask shareholders to support bad bank scheme or risk nationalisation November 30, 2009 BANK of Ireland and Allied Irish Banks may net €28bn (£26bn) from selling toxic property loans to the country’s so-called “bad bank”. Both banks warned their shareholders to accept the plan to sell the assets at a steep discount to the government’s National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) or they could face further financial difficulties and [...]
Air travel ascends from doldrums as flyers return November 30, 2009 AIR travel is slowly climbing out of its sharp descent in the recession, industry figures showed yesterday.Passenger demand last month rose 0.5 per cent on October last year, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA). Growth is now six per cent above a low in March, when firms and holidaymakers stopped flying in the [...]
St Ives suffers sales slump November 30, 2009 St Ives, printer of the Harry Potter books, suffered a nine per cent fall in underlying sales in the first quarter but said profitability remained in line with expectations. The printer said the economic outlook remained uncertain with a number of clients cautious about the early part of next year. St Ives, which has cut [...]
Goldshield harmed by bid battle November 30, 2009 The chairman of Goldshield has admitted that the takeover battle for the pharmaceutical group has harmed its performance. Dr Keith Hallawell said investment in new products had stalled due to the uncertainty that the bid battle created among suppliers. Goldshield’s management team has agreed to aqcuire the company for £179m after gaining the support of [...]
Cairn takes control of Capricorn November 30, 2009 Cairn Energy is taking full control if its exploration subsidiary Capricorn, which owns large oil blocks in Greenland, as it boosts its focus on the North Atlantic. The company said it would buy a 10 per cent stake in Capricorn from Dyas, part of Dutch group SHV, for $95m to be paid in shares along [...]
Lib Dems revise mansion tax November 30, 2009 THE Liberal Democrats have doubled the threshold at which they want homeowners to pay an annual “mansion tax”. Properties will now have to be worth at least £2m to incur a one per cent charge – the previous plan was to charge 0.5 per cent a year on properties worth more than £1m. Party leader [...]
Creston upbeat on profits as chairman elect named November 30, 2009 MARKETING communications firm Creston posted a marginal rise in first-half headline pre-tax profit even as revenue fell six per cent, and said the second half looked more positive. Effective average interest rate was below two per cent, helping the company post a one per cent rise in headline pre-tax profit to £6.31m, Creston said. “The [...]
De Beers set to secure $1bn from owners November 30, 2009 DIAMOND miner De Beers is understood to have convinced its owners – Anglo American, the Oppenheimer family and Botswana’s Debswama Mining Company – to inject $1bn (£646m) into the firm via a share placing. De Beers was forced to ask for financial assistance from its shareholders after the diamond market hit its worst period since [...]
CAN DE BEERS REFINANCE WITHOUT HELP FROM ANGLO AMERICAN? November 30, 2009 CHARLES KERNOT EVOLUTION“Investing in De Beers would be a positive move for Anglo – there’s little opportunity to increase supply in diamonds and we are looking at a shortfall in supply over demand into 2010. As De Beers is in talks to restructure its debt, it could be that the banks want to see some [...]