Pre-nup ruling will shake up divorce law July 2, 2009 THE DAYS of lucrative divorce settlements in the UK could be drawing to a close, after a London appeal court ruled yesterday that a pre-nuptial agreement between a wealthy German heiress and her husband was legally binding. Lord Justice Mathew Thorpe handed down a landmark ruling which determined that a contract between heiress Katrin Radmacher [...]
Chris Hohn’s TCI reveals a 73 per cent jump in profits July 2, 2009 THE activist hedge fund firm TCI, which is run by Chris Hohn, has seen profits surge 73 per cent, according to accounts published yesterday. The Children’s Investment Fund Management (UK) LLP reported profit available for sharing among members of £555.8m for the year to end-August 2008, up from 320.8m a year before. The firm paid [...]
US job losses jump in June July 2, 2009 US UNEMPLOYMENT jumped by more than expected in June, taking the jobless rate of the world’s largest economy to 9.5 per cent, the highest in more than a quarter of a century. Non-farm payroll data, released yesterday, showed that US employers cut 467,000 jobs last month, significantly more than the 363,000 estimated, breaking four months [...]
PVM Oil Futures’ rogue trader costs company around 10m July 2, 2009 A ROGUE trader has left a London-based oil brokerage with losses of almost $10m (£6m) following a series of unauthorised trades two days ago which are thought to have caused a spike in global crude prices. PVM Oil Futures issued a statement yesterday after talk of irregular trading swept through London and Asian oil markets [...]
Eurozone jobless soars to 15m as ECB keeps interest rates on hold July 2, 2009 THE European Central Bank (ECB) kept interest rates on hold at one per cent yesterday, where they are expected to stay well into next year, especially in the light of Eurozone unemployment hitting a 10-year high of 9.5 per cent in May. ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet said: “We had not envisaged any new, other measure [...]
SCRAP SCHEME ACCELERATES FORD SALES July 2, 2009 CARMAKER Ford said yesterday it had taken orders for over 12,000 new vehicles under the UK government’s cash-for-bangers scheme. Ford said more than 75 per cent of its scrappage orders are for its small car range with the Fiesta, Ka and Fusion models all selling well under the plan.
StanChart plumps for John Peace July 2, 2009 EMERGING markets bank Standard Chartered, which has enjoyed healthy revenues and profits, confirmed yesterday it had appointed John Peace as the group’s new chairman with immediate effect. Peace, 60, is set to receive £650,000 a year and a further £500,000 in shares, which will vest over the next three years. He is also chairman of [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: IS JOHN PEACE THE RIGHT MAN TO CHAIR STANDARD CHARTERED? July 2, 2009 NIC CLARKE CHARLES STANLEYThere had been a few leading contenders but with news that Win Bischoff is apparently set to become chairman of Lloyds, we were not surprised with the appointment of John Peace . He has done a good job as acting chairman since Mervyn Davies joined the UK government. However, we do highlight [...]
Johnson & Johnson in Elan deal July 2, 2009 Healthcare company Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is to spend $1bn (£610m) on an 18.4 per cent stake in Irish biotech company Elan and will also pick up a stake in the firm’s experimental Alzheimer’s treatment, it said yesterday. The transaction will hand J&J an interest in bapineuzumab, an experimental drug for Alzheimer’s that is in [...]
Renault executive exits Avtovaz July 2, 2009 Russian carmaker Avtovaz, which makes Lada cars and is 25 per cent owned by Renault, replaced the most senior French executive on its management board with a Russian as part of a crisis plan that could see other managers appointed by the French carmaker leave. Renault confirmed that Igor Komarov, Avtovaz’s executive vice-president in charge [...]