Genus sees sperm demand grow September 10, 2009 Genus, the group which specialises in bull and pig breeding, is predicting an increase in demand for its sperm, as the agricultural industry comes out of recession. “The steep downturn was exacerbated by extremely high animal feed prices and we believe the upturn could be equally steep,” chief executive Richard Wood said.
Poor sales in Europe drag Kesa down September 10, 2009 KESA, the group which owns Comet, said yesterday its first quarter sales had slumped 3.9 per cent year on year, as the downturn in Europe outweighed a slight UK recovery. Sales at Comet went up 0.3 per cent, compared to the same period last year, but the company’s French unit Darty saw sales drop by [...]
Home Retail Group boosted by kitchens September 10, 2009 HOMEBASE and Argos owner Home Retail Group said yesterday it would match the previous year’s interim underlying profits, as sales of televisions and kitchens held up through the slump. Benchmark profit before tax will be “broadly in line” with last year’s £121m, it said. The group said customers were staying at home in the recession, [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS September 10, 2009 TESCOJP Morgan said that 2009/10 will be a year of two halves for Tesco in terms of like-for-like growth, margin development and competition. The broker reiterated its “underweight” rating and 335p target price, saying that the chain remains a company with great assets and management track record but that it faces challenges. GAME GROUPGame’s current [...]
US trade gap widening September 10, 2009 THE US trade deficit increased the most in more than 10 years in July as rebounding consumer demand led to a record increase in imports, a government report showed yesterday. The trade gap expanded 16.3 per cent in July to $32bn (£19.2bn), the biggest month-to-month increase since February 1999. Imports leapt a record 4.7 per [...]
As the runt of the mobile litter, 3 will not survive September 10, 2009 AND then there were three. Or at least there will be, because Hutchison Whampoa’s 3 will find it extremely tough to survive following the merger of T-Mobile and Orange in the UK. That would leave what analysts are dubbing “T-Orange”, with a 37 per cent share of mobile revenues in the UK, O2 with 27 [...]
Daniel Stewart offloads stake to Middle East investor Prime Group September 10, 2009 STOCKBROKER Daniel Stewart has agreed a deal to sell a 26 per cent stake in the business to Middle Eastern investment bank Prime Group, raising £2.3m and allowing the group access to the Gulf and North African markets. Daniel Stewart said it had conditionally placed 110m new ordinary shares at 2.1p per share with Prime [...]
GENERAL MOTORS SELLS VAUXHALL September 10, 2009 CAR giant General Motors (GM) yesterday revealed it is selling a 55 per cent stake in Vauxhall and Opel to Canadian car parts maker Magna International. The announcement ends a long bidding war for its European arm between Magna, which is backed by Russian bank Sberbank, and Belgian group RHJ International and Beijing Automotive. The [...]
Authorities start sport retail probe September 10, 2009 SPORT retailers JJB Sports and Sports Direct are at the centre of a double-pronged probe into allegations of anti-competitive behaviour that could see the companies and their directors landed with heavy fines and even jail time. Separate investigations are being conducted by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) and the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), which [...]
Britain needs very large spending cuts September 10, 2009 GENERAL Motors’ sensible sale of its Opel/Vauxhall division to Magna, the Canadian firm, has already prompted fresh demands for more handouts to ensure car production remains in the UK. The Germans, after all, have pledged cash to save Opel jobs; so we should do the same with Vauxhall before it is too late – or [...]