After the Nvidelity comes the Huangover. Jensen Huang joins long list who confused boardroom and bedroom
Cheap finance lifts National Grid November 19, 2009 Gas and electricity transmission network operator National Grid expects a strong year on the back of low financing costs but sees no recovery in demand to pre-crisis levels for several years. Steve Holliday, chief executive of Britain’s biggest utility, also said yesterday it would be looking at EDF’s UK electricity distribution assets, joining Scottish & [...]
Smedvig’s investors cash in November 19, 2009 London-based private equity firm Smedvig Capital has announced the sale of Protego Real Estate Investors to US-based Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers, delivering a return of over six times the original investment in just five years. Smedvig, which also has investments in Streetcar and Ocean Outdoor – which operates advertising sites and the IMAX Cinema and [...]
YOUNG’S CHEERS CITY November 19, 2009 LONDON-focused pub group Young’s & Co yesterday reported a 3.7 per cent jump in its first-half pre-tax profits as drinkers flocked to its City outlets. The group, which has 221 pubs in the capital, said it made a pre-tax profit of £12.3m in the six months to 26 September, compared to £11.9m last year.
Halfords’ first half profits pedal ahead November 19, 2009 BIKE and car parts retailer Halfords laid out ambitious expansion plans yesterday as it announced strong first half results that saw pre-tax profits surge 24 per cent to £60.9m. The company is planning to open 150 stores in central Europe following a successful trial with four outlets in the Czech Republic. It will also add [...]
Sales grow at Morrisons November 19, 2009 WM Morrison yesterday unveiled strong third quarter sales, a day after the City and investors were left reeling from the shock departure of its chief executive Marc Bolland. The group said like-for-like sales rose 4.3 per cent in the 13 weeks to 1 November, just below expectations, as slowing food inflation pegged back growth from [...]
BLUE-BLOODED CAZENOVE AND THE MYSTERY OF A TRUE ANCIENT RELIC November 19, 2009 BLUE-blooded City stockbroker Cazenove might have officially agreed to surrender the rest of itself to US investment bank JP Morgan, but something tells The Capitalist the die-hards won’t be ready to forget the firm’s noble heritage in a hurry. Lunch yesterday was with a City chum who remembers Caz’s days at its old headquarters in [...]
BRITAIN SINKS EVER DEEPER INTO THE RED November 19, 2009 UK PUBLIC borrowing reached a record high in October, according to official figures published yesterday, revealing the state of public finances to be much worse than many economists feared. Borrowing ballooned by £11.4bn during October, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said, around double the consensus forecast. National debt has spiralled to £829.7bn – equivalent [...]
WANTED: STEADY HAND AT THE TILL November 19, 2009 THE departure of Wm Morrison boss Marc Bolland won’t blow the supermarket off course, retail experts said yesterday as the Bradford-based company posted another set of strong sales figures and customer growth. With Bolland sidelined ahead of taking the reins at Marks & Spencer in January, finance director Richard Pennycook took responsibility for yesterday’s trading [...]
Goldman hires 272 new MDs November 19, 2009 GOLDMAN Sachs has invited 272 executives to join the ranks of its managing directors, in yet another sign of its rude health following the global downturn. The promotions will make the executives eligible for more of Goldman’s lucrative bonus pool next year. The group of 272 is smaller than the 299 promoted during 2007, a [...]
Horlick loses fund contract November 19, 2009 NICOLA Horlick’s Bramdean Asset Management has lost its lucrative management contract at listed investment fund Bramdean Alternatives, five months after the end of a bruising spat with its biggest shareholder, property mogul Vincent Tchenguiz. The contract has been passed to Aberdeen Asset Management for an initial three-year period. The fund’s board added it would bring [...]