Gap is widening between best and worst brands October 20, 2009 THINGS have picked up on the high street over the last month, but it’s not a case of a rising tide lifting all boats: the recession seems to have made the customer more discerning. Of the 25 high street retailers which BrandIndex measures daily, we’ve taken three of our top-ranked, and compared them with three [...]
Finance M&A to jump October 20, 2009 The European financial services market is set for a wave of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity, according to Pricewaterhouse-Coopers. In its European Financial Markets M&A Insights report, the accountancy firm said that the “steady as she goes” ethos that has been prevalent throughout 2009 will give way to a “restructuring-led wave of deal activity” as [...]
CITY VIEWS: DO YOU HAVE ANY SYMPATHY WITH ROYAL MAIL WORKERS OVER THE IMPENDING STRIKE ACTION? October 20, 2009 JONATHAN POLIN SALANS“Any sympathy that the postal workers might have had, they have lost.The public are not going to sympathise with them if they are causing widespread disruption. But it won’t affect the City as much as you might think because of email, UPS and document exchange systems that are already in use across businesses.” [...]
Adecco buys rival for $1.3bn October 20, 2009 ADECCO, the world’s largest staffing company, is buying American rival MPS Group for $1.3bn (£790m), boosting its high-margin and more recession-resilient professional staffing business. Adecco also said it was launching a SFr900m (£540m) mandatory convertible bond to accommodate the cash deal. The MPS deal, plus the recent acquisition of Britain’s Spring Group, means close to [...]
Insolvencies for Q3 are falling October 20, 2009 THE number of companies with significant and critical financial problems has fallen both year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter, figures from the rescue, recovery and restructuring specialists Begbies Traynor showed yesterday. The figures show how HMRC’s Business Payment Support Service, which has seen more than 215,000 companies defer payment of £3.79bn in tax liabilities, are helping, it said. [...]
Mandelson in warning over post strikes October 20, 2009 THE finances of state-owned Royal Mail will dive into the red if a planned national strike by workers goes ahead this week, business secretary Lord Mandelson said yesterday. Thousands of postal workers will stage strikes organised by the Communication Workers Union on Thursday and Friday this week in a dispute over pay, jobs and modernisation [...]
Balfour Beatty wins contracts October 20, 2009 Balfour Beatty, the construction company yesterday said it has won a series of contracts from US military clients worth £273m. The contracts included the renovation and construction of barracks and the building of a new dormitory. Balfour Beatty also said it has won some contracts with non-military clients including a government complex in Texas, plus [...]
Crossrail will affect Paddington October 20, 2009 Crossrail, the £16bn high speed train project has advertised for a contract which will reshape the underground at Paddington. The 18-month contract will see the Hammersmith and City line redecorated, as well as resurfacing and roof construction work to be carried out. Lifts, escalators and a new taxi rank will also be built, while the [...]
JSM faces shareholder resistance October 20, 2009 JSM Indochina’s shareholder, San Francisco-based investment firm Passport Capital yesterday said it has called for an emergency meeting of the AIM-listed property firm’s shareholders to overhaul the board of directors. Passport, which owns a 13.4 per cent stake in JSM said there were “serious corporate governance failings and the lack of transparency on matters of [...]
Darling refuses to accept EC financial system plans October 20, 2009 CHANCELLOR Alistair Darling put the brakes on European Commission (EC) plans to bring in a new system of financial supervision yesterday. Darling has demanded an assurance that the plans would not lead to the EC being able to force extra fiscal costs on the UK. European lawmakers sought agreement at a routine meeting of finance [...]