Firms want new code of practice June 24, 2009 A clutch of the UK’s largest firms have called for the code of best practice covering boardrooms to be loosened, to allow them to opt out of guidelines. Companies including British Airways, Marks & Spencer (M&S) and Cable & Wireless want a change to the code’s ethos of “comply or explain” because they believe investors [...]
The gravy train shows no sign of hitting the buffers June 23, 2009 YESTIMOTHY BARBERIF the size of RBS boss Stephen Hester’s pay package wasn’t already invoking the wrath of the new breed of mealy-mouthed ascetics, the news that his bank is spending £300,000 on Wimbledon hospitality has really got them frothing into their sackcloth. These people seem to dream of some shining future in which MPs don’t [...]
Just say no when it comes to pay holidays June 23, 2009 DEAR VEXED, with all this talk of firms asking to take a pay holiday, I am worried that my boss might ask me to work for free. I can’t afford it, but I’m worried that it might be a trick to test our loyalty. Help! Jessica, 26, broker The saying goes that there is one [...]
Lending weak but mortgage approvals up June 23, 2009 THERE was more good news for the UK housing market yesterday in the shape of mortgage approvals data from the British Bankers’ Association (BBA). The BBA said approvals for home purchase numbered 31,162 in May, compared to 29,018 in April. This marks a 15.8 per cent increase on the same period in 2008. BBA statistics [...]
DRAX FIRED UP FOR SHARE PLACING June 23, 2009 DRAX, which owns west Europe’s biggest coal-fired power station, said yesterday it would launch a £100m share sale, as it looks to pay off debt and keep its credit rating. It will place up to 25.5m new ordinary shares – or 7.5 per cent of its share capital – to raise money. Last month, Drax’s [...]
Bank economist: QE is showing positive signs June 23, 2009 IT MAY be too soon to judge precisely how effective the Bank of England’s quantitative easing (QE) programme has been but there are already early positive signs, the BoE’s chief economist Spencer Dale said in a speech yesterday. “It is still early days in terms of judging the ultimate success of the programme in stimulating [...]
RBS loss is the biggest of any bank in world June 23, 2009 ROYAL Bank of Scotland lost more than any other bank in the world last year, booking a pre-tax operating loss of nearly $60bn (£36.7bn), according to figures released today. The Banker magazine’s Top 1000 World Banks 2008/09 survey revealed that RBS was the world’s biggest loser, beating Wall Street giant Citigroup, which lost slightly more [...]
RISING STAR OF THE SUN June 23, 2009 REBEKAH Wade has been named as the new chief executive of News International, which publishes The Sun, The Times and The News of the World, as well as other British newspapers. Wade, who has edited The Sun for six years, will report to James Murdoch, the News Corp chairman and chief executive Europe and Asia.
Debenhams raising flops June 23, 2009 HIGHSTREET retailer Debenhams yesterday said its shareholders had taken up just a third of its share offering in a £323m fundraising. The department store chain launched the cash call earlier this month to achieve chief executive Rob Templeman’s aim of taking its £900m debt mountain “off the agenda”. Britain’s second largest high-street retailer said 73,388,851 [...]
MySpace says it will axe two thirds of international staff June 23, 2009 STRUGGLING social networking site MySpace said yesterday that it will cut about two thirds of its international work force and close at least four of its offices outside of the US, putting dozens of UK staff at risk. The News Corp-owned firm has proposed a restructuring plan that would see its international staff cut from [...]