After the Nvidelity comes the Huangover. Jensen Huang joins long list who confused boardroom and bedroom
Camelot sales on the up in slump November 24, 2009 Camelot, the group which runs the National Lottery, said yesterday its six-month Lottery ticket sales grew to £2.6bn, an increase of £68.9m, or 2.7 per cent, on the same period last year. During the half-year, Camelot said it increased sales of both draw-based and non draw-based games, across all channels, including retail, interactive and subscriptions. [...]
15m placing as Topps Tiles profits crack November 24, 2009 TILE and wood flooring retailer Topps Tiles yesterday reported a sharp 45 per cent dive in full-year profits and said it is set to raise £15.4m from a share placing to bolster its balance sheet against a possible double-dip recession. The company, which trades from 321 stores, reported that its annual pre-tax profit to 26 [...]
Bookie William Hill covers its losses by poaching finance director from Bovis November 24, 2009 Bookmaker William Hill stunned the City yesterday by announcing it is parting company with its finance director Simon Lane and poaching property firm Bovis Homes’ FD Neil Cooper for the job. William Hill said that Lane is stepping down after deciding he wants to “seek a fresh challenge” following the group’s successful £350m discounted rights [...]
AT THE BORDERS EDGE November 24, 2009 BORDERS fuelled closure fears yesterday by halting orders on its website while the retailer is “in discussion with potential buyers”. The firm said existing orders will be delayed, but fulfilled. Some analysts believe Borders may not survive until Christmas, and unless a buyer is found is expected to go into administration.
De La Rue sees profits drop November 24, 2009 BRITISH printer De La Rue yesterday reported a six per cent fall in pre-tax profits after it was hit by a hike in interest charges. The bank note printer and cash handling machine specialist reported a $44.2m profit (£26.5m) in the six months to 26 September. As well as higher interest charges, the cost of reorganising its [...]
Kraft asks its bankers for exclusivity November 24, 2009 KRAFT has sealed “exclusivity” deals from the banks it is using to finance its £10.3bn ($17bn) bid for Cadbury – leaving other contenders with fewer lenders to bankroll their proposals. The US food giant has tied banks including Citigroup and Deutsche Bank into agreements where they cannot operate for its rivals. Family-owned Ferrero of Italy and US [...]
EuropeanCommission to drop its Qualcomm case November 24, 2009 THEEuropean Commission closed antitrust proceedings against Qualcomm yesterday, after big technology companies dropped their four-year old complaints against the US mobile chip supplier. The Commission’s decision came as Ericsson, the world’s biggest mobile network equipment maker, and Texas Instruments, Qualcomm’s biggest wireless chip rival, both announced that they were withdrawing their complaints. The case, which [...]
Koenigsegg pulls out of Saab deal November 24, 2009 TINY Swedish luxury carmaker Koenigsegg yesterday pulled out of talks with General Motors (GM) over its purchase of the US car giant’s loss-making Saab unit, putting its future in doubt. Koenigsegg said it had “come to the painful and difficult conclusion” that it could not push on with the acquisition, while GM said it was [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS November 24, 2009 BLACKS LEISURE Seymour Pierce yesterday upgraded to “Outperform” from “Sell” its rating on Blacks Leisure. It said the approval of a Company Voluntary Arrangement eighteen months into turnaround plans at the company was the catalyst for the upgrade. The terms return financial stability to the store’s portfolio, Seymour Pierce said, leaving it in substantially better [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS November 24, 2009 Clifford Chance The law firm has elected Andrew Forryan as the new London leader for its capital markets practice, for a period of four years.Forryan, who takes over from David Bickerton, recently elected as the firm’s regional managing partner in the UK and Middle East, has been a partner at Clifford Chance since 1997. He [...]