Vodafone: T-Mobile UK sale is not imminent July 28, 2009 A Sale of Deutsche Telekom’s T-Mobile UK subsidiary to Vodafone is not imminent, Vodafone said yesterday. At a gloomy annual meeting, overshadowed by economic and performance concerns, Vodafone chairman Sir John Bond said he could not comment further on T-Mobile UK. But he said he did not think the sale of Britain’s second-smallest mobile operator [...]
Airbus owner hit by drop in plane orders July 28, 2009 AIRBUS parent company EADS yesterday said its first half profits had tumbled as orders for its aircraft slumped. The firm said profits in the period were down 23 per cent to €888m (£766m) and warned it might have to pay penalties because of delays to its A400M military aircraft. The company said its net cash [...]
CITY VIEWS: DO YOU THINK DEMAND FOR LUXURY GOODS WILL DECLINE IN THE CURRENT ECONOMIC DOWNTURN? July 28, 2009 DAN BUNTING BANKER“I think that people who can afford them in the first place will continue to buy luxury items. On the other hand, maybe those who are sensible will save. I suppose it is also wage dependent, just as many expenditures are.” MEL DIXON AZTEC“No, I don’t think so. The market can’t withstand luxuries [...]
LVMH loses fizz as wine sales drop July 28, 2009 LVMH, the biggest player in the luxury goods market, yesterday reported a 23 per cent slump in first half profits as the downturn hit discretionary spending. The group, which owns the Dom Perignon brand, was dragged down by its wines and spirits division which suffered a record 41 per cent drop in profits as champagne [...]
Socit Gnrale rogue trader insists bank bosses knew what he was doing July 28, 2009 THE ROGUE trader who accumulated trading positions that caused a €4.9bn (£4.2bn) loss for French bank Société Générale (SocGen) yesterday told a French court his bosses at the bank were aware of his activities. Jerome Kerviel’s lawyers said he never tried to hide the trades from superiors. They added that 300 of his colleagues at [...]
BBVA profits jump due to rise in interest on loans July 28, 2009 SPANISH bank BBVA reported a 35 per cent jump in second-quarter profits yesterday, thanks to increased income from loans. Net profit for the three months to the end of June was €1.56bn (£1.35bn), up from €1.16bn in the second quarter of 2008 and ahead of an analysts’ consensus of €1.3bn. The bank was boosted by [...]
Provident thrives amid crisis July 28, 2009 SUB-PRIME lender Provident Financial reported a 3.5 per cent rise in half-year profit and predicted ongoing growth yesterday, despite the effects of the recession. Pre-tax profit in the first six months of the year reached £53.1m, up from £51.3m in the same period last year. Provident, which lends to borrowers who cannot secure credit from [...]
Rock investors to fight on despite courtroom defeat July 28, 2009 FORMER shareholders in Northern Rock have vowed to continue their fight to be awarded compensation from the government for the loss of their holdings, after losing a legal battle yesterday. The group of 200,000 small investors, backed by major hedge fund investors SRM Global and RAB Capital, had launched an appeal disputing the High Court’s [...]
Profits at BP slump by half in downturn July 28, 2009 OIL giant BP yesterday said that second quarter profits had slumped by more than half as it continued to suffer from falling energy demand and a weak oil price. According to the replacement cost profit measure – which strips out gains or losses related to any changes in the value of its fuel stocks – [...]
Toon club bidder pulls out July 28, 2009 The future of Newcastle United continues to hang in the balance after Singapore-based Profitable Group, which is fronted by former England midfielder Steve McMahon, pulled out of a deal. Profitable Group has said that a bid was tabled, but a failure to communicate led to it being abandoned. However, other sources say the group was [...]