MP support for Heathrow expansion reaches new high (says poll commissioned by Heathrow) December 19, 2016 It might have some prominent opposition, from London mayor Sadiq Khan to Boris Johnson, but Heathrow wants to make clear its expansion has hefty backing too. The airport has just released a new poll of 130 MPs by ComRes, which recorded 74 per cent of MPs backing the third runway; a rise of seven percentage points [...]
BP to pour almost $1bn into “world-class” West African gas hub in Mauritania and Senegal with Kosmos Energy December 19, 2016 Blue-chip oil major BP has said it will invest $916m (£733m) in gas exploration in West Africa through a partnership with American firm Kosmos Energy. BP will take a 62 per cent interest in Kosmos' exploration blocks in Mauritania and a 32.5 per cent working interest in its Senegal blocks. The 33,000 square km of acreage [...]
Danone warns on sales growth target December 19, 2016 Yoghurt maker Danone has reduced its forecast for like-for-like sales growth due to the poor performance of its probiotic yoghurt Activia. Danone said in a statement the company has been facing an "increasingly volatile and complex environment" and that "Activia's performance as well as aggravated market conditions in Spain have impacted Europe Dairy results". Read more: [...]
Christmas strikes 2016: From Southern rail to British Airways, why’s everyone striking? December 19, 2016 A raft of Christmas strikes is set to unfold this week, with travel particularly affected. Around 3,000 staff at various Crown post offices are set to walk out today, Tuesday and Saturday, while members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union unleash their latest industrial action on Southern rail today and tomorrow, with an ongoing [...]
Royal Dutch Shell offloads Australian aviation fuel business in £200m deal with Viva Energy December 19, 2016 Royal Dutch Shell has signed an agreement to sell its Australian aviation business to Viva Energy for around $250m (£200m). Viva Energy, which is controlled by European energy trader Vitol Holdings, bought Shell's other downstream activities in Australia in 2014 and sells Shell-branded fuels and lubricants. The company will "continue to supply aviation customers with [...]
Brewin Dolphin snaps up asset manager Duncan Lawrie for £28m December 19, 2016 FTSE 250-listed investment manager Brewin Dolphin has snapped up a UK private client investment management business for £28m. Duncan Lawrie Asset Management (DLAM) has around 1,000 client relationships and manages funds of £735m, Brewin Dolphin said this morning. On a pro-forma basis Brewin Dolphin's total group funds under management will increase to £36.1bn. The acquisition was financed [...]
After subdued 2016, contrained by Brexit and Trump, these bankers are predicting a 2017 bounceback for UK M&A December 19, 2016 Despite mega-deals involving the London Stock Exchange, Arm Holdings, Sky and a big takeover approach from British American Tobacco (BAT), even the most optimistic M&A banker would concede it’s been a somewhat subdued year for UK deals. After a record 2015, a year in which Megabrew was finally agreed and Anglo-Dutch oil major Shell tied [...]
Yahoo would be liable to pay a $198m fine were GDPR already enforced December 19, 2016 At the dawn of the internet, Google and Yahoo were in stiff competition for search dominance. Many think the former’s success was due in part to its name becoming a ubiquitous verb for searching online. But decades on, semantic development has finally caught up with Yahoo. Its name is now synonymous with bad data practice. [...]
Tyrie calls for national cyber centre to ensure finance is “high priority “ December 19, 2016 An influential MP has called on the government's intelligence agencies to ensure cyber security within the financial services industry is a top priority in the wake of several high profile banking data breaches and failing legacy IT systems. Andrew Tyrie, the chair of the Treasury Select Committee, has written to the chief executive of the National Cyber Security [...]
Liberty House saves Scottish jobs and promises to create more after buying Britain’s only aluminium smelter December 19, 2016 The Scottish economy received a £330m boost today after steel tycoon Sanjeev Gupta agreed to buy Britain's last remaining aluminium smelter. Liberty House and Simec – both part of the GFG Alliance – agreed to buy the hydro-powered plant in Fort William from Rio Tinto, safeguarding 170 jobs and promising to directly generate 300 more. Read more: Liberty [...]