Retail giant H&M lagging behind competitors as shares drop March 15, 2017 H&M’s shares dropped by nearly 5 per cent, the first downturn of its kind in four years. The figures H&M’s sales decreased 1 per cent year-on-year last month, bringing its shares down 4.5 per cent. This drop is the first of its kind in four years. Fiscal first-quarter sales were up 5.5 per cent from [...]
LuxLeaks’ whistleblowers have sentences reduced, but appeal court upholds convictions March 15, 2017 A Luxembourg appeals court today cut the sentences of two ex-PwC workers for playing a part in leaking data from the firm which revealed the ins and outs of the tax tricks used by hundreds of companies. In a court ruling last June, Antoine Deltour was given a 12-month suspended sentence and a €1,500 (£1,305) fine and Raphael [...]
E.On’s share price loses energy as it reveals its biggest ever loss March 15, 2017 E.On's shares dropped more than three per cent after the energy provider announced it booked a net loss for 2016 double the loss of the previous year. The figures In the year to the end of December, the German energy firm reported a net loss of €16bn, compared with a loss €6.4bn the previous year. This was its [...]
HOLD: Hands off interest rates, City A.M.’s Shadow MPC tells Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee March 15, 2017 Economists expect the Bank of England to leave monetary policy unchanged at tomorrow’s meeting of senior policymakers, but pressure is slowly growing to begin pushing monetary policy back to more normal levels. City A.M.’s Shadow Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted in favour of keeping policy unchanged, but added another dissenter since February's meeting pushing for [...]
AstraZeneca turns to healthtech startup Umotif to capture patient data treasure trove March 15, 2017 Pharmaceuticals giant AstraZeneca has turned to an innovative startup helping patients, doctors and researchers track health conditions to better understand and treat them. Umotif, a digital health startup based in London which was behind the first ever app to be prescribed by the NHS, will work with the FTSE 100 firm to create digital products for monitoring clinical trials, [...]
AT&T wins European Commission approval for $85bn Time Warner deal but faces battle in the US March 15, 2017 US telecoms giant AT&T has won European Commission approval for its $85bn (£70bn) takeover deal for Time Warner. “We appreciate the skilled work of the European Commission’s team for their timely effort to analyse and clear the AT&T-Time Warner merger,” said Bob Quinn, senior executive vice president of AT&T external and legislative sffairs. Read more: [...]
How nine City experts reacted to Philip Hammond’s NIC u-turn March 15, 2017 It's official: Philip Hammond has bowed to criticism and scrapped his controversial plans to hike National Insurance Contributions for the self-employed. Reactions from have varied, from confusion to outright glee. Here's how nine of the City's most important organisations reacted. Read more: Hammond's U-turn on National Insurance hike plans – read his letter in full [...]
Manx Telecom share price rises after revealing “solid” annual figures March 15, 2017 Manx Telecom, which operates the Isle of Man's telecoms network, today revealed it is generating annual sales equivalent to almost £1,000 per person living on the island. Shares rose one per cent in the wake of the news. The figures Revenue rose by 1.5 per cent to £81m, with underlying earnings of £28m, the same [...]
Wealth manager Brooks Macdonald reports growth despite “really terrible” period after Brexit vote March 15, 2017 Wealth manager Brooks Macdonald today reported growth in funds under management (FUM), revenues and profits, despite a “really terrible” period after the EU referendum. The figures Discretionary FUM were £9.3bn at the end of 2016, up 19 per cent on 2015. In the six months to 31 December, revenue came in at £45.3m, up 17 [...]
City office rents propped up in uncertain times by low supply March 15, 2017 Rents in the City's offices are being propped up by low supply, with only three buildings set to be completed in the capital's financial quarter this year. This year 1 Angel Court, 45 Cannon Street and the Scalpel will be finished, and Chris Vydra, City leasing agent for CBRE, said that the dearth of new [...]