BMI investor goes to high court May 20, 2009 The controlling shareholder of business airline BMI, Sir Michael Bishop, is going to the high court to try and force through a takeover of the group by German carrier Lufthansa. Bishop launched legal proceedings yesterday, saying his group had done everything required of it to complete a £350m buyout by Lufthansa. The move came after [...]
Mandelson may win in reshuffle May 20, 2009 Business secretary Lord Mandelson could be made foreign secretary, it emerged last night, as Gordon Brown plans a cabinet reshuffle for next month. He’s planning the moves as a damage-limitation exercise after the 4 June local and European elections. Mandelson’s grandfather, Herbert Morrison, was foreign secretary, and it is believed to be a dream job [...]
Broughton hits out at 50p rate May 20, 2009 OUTGOING CBI president Martin Broughton slated Alistair Darling’s Budget last night, and said the 50p top tax rate was “a piece of economic vandalism.” Speaking at the CBI’s annual dinner, he said the Budget had not helped out the ailing economy, and that its measures had been based on “heroic growth assumptions”. And he said [...]
City lawyers under fire from FSA May 20, 2009 The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has launched a criminal insider dealing prosecution against two senior City lawyers. Andrew Rimmington, a corporate partner in D&W’s London office, and Michael McFall, a former London corporate partner at McDermott Will & Emery, have been accused of insider dealing. The case relates to Swiss pharmaceuticals group Novartis’ 2006 takeover of [...]
JD crosses channel for Chausport May 20, 2009 Retailer JD Sports Fashion said yesterday it had bought the sports footwear retailer Chausport for €8m (£6m) in cash to enter the French market. JD said it has also acquired €2m of debt as part of the purchase of the 78-store group. “The JD board expects that the Chausport acquisition will be earnings enhancing in [...]
New LSE chief vows to keep market share May 20, 2009 THE London Stock Exchange’s (LSE) new chief executive, Xavier Rolet, yesterday vowed to fight newcomers hoping to take market share from the 200-year old institution. Taking the reigns from Dame Clara Furse – who stepped down after eight years – Rolet said he would not rule out consolidation with other companies nor the launch of [...]
Share sale aids BoA to speed TARP payback May 20, 2009 BANK of America (BoA) moved halfway to finding the $33.9bn (£21.9bn) the US government has demanded it raise yesterday as it said it had sold $13.4bn worth of shares since Friday. America’s largest bank said in a statement after the closing bell that it had sold 1.25bn common shares at an average price of $10.77 [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD FOR THE LSE? May 20, 2009 RUPAK GHOSE CREDIT SUISSE “The main area of positive surprise was from costs, around £10-20m better than expectations. We continue to believe that LSE is relatively fully valued and have an underperform rating on the stock – but given the better than expected costs we expect the share price to be relatively strong in the [...]
Sterling gains against dollar as bulls return May 20, 2009 STERLING is undervalued, according to almost a quarter of fund managers, marking a dramatic turnaround in optimism on the beleagured currency. The finding from Bank of America Securities-Merrill Lynch’s global monthly fund manager survey marks a rise from April when 17 per cent saw the pound as undervalued. The optimism comes as strategists predict a [...]
IMA recruits fund stars to its board May 20, 2009 ASSET management trade body the Investment Management Association (IMA) has appointed a slew of fund management heavyweights to its board including Alain Dromer, global chief executive of the £235bn Aviva Investors. The IMA, which speaks for the £3.4 trillion UK asset management industry, has named four new members also including Investec Asset Management boss Hendrik [...]