Investcorp founder Nemir Kirdar to step down after 32 years October 9, 2014 Investcorp founder Nemir Kirdar will retire from the group next year after more than 30 years at the heart of the Bahrain-based group. “I step down satisfied that Investcorp is now firmly established as a global financial institution,” he said. Kirdar, who is executive chairman and chief executive of the firm, will retire on 30 [...]
Mothercare plans turnaround with £100m fundraise to stem UK losses October 9, 2014 Mothercare shareholders yesterday approved plans for a £100m rights issue to help fund another raft of store closures and revamps, as it steps up efforts to stem losses at its UK business. Despite having a profitable overseas business, Mothercare has been struggling with fierce competition in its home market from supermarkets and online players such [...]
Monthly UK card transactions pass 1bn mark for the first time October 9, 2014 Spending on the plastic hit a record high this summer as Britons increasingly shopped with cards, not cash, figures released yesterday by the UK Cards Association revealed. Debit card transaction levels shot up 9.5 per cent on the year to 774m in August. And credit card sales increased 8.4 per cent to 232m in the [...]
Tourists flocking to UK as 10m visitors make it a bumper year October 9, 2014 Tourism provided a welcome boost to the UK economy over the last year with more than 10m overseas visitors opting for a British holiday. The number of tourists visiting the UK was up six per cent for the year-to-date, according to figures released yesterday by the Office for National Statistics. Meanwhile, the beaches of Brighton [...]
Investment in North Sea oil on the backburner October 9, 2014 OIL AND gas operators may delay investing in North Sea operations until after the chancellor’s Autumn Statement, according to a new report from Deloitte. The report found that four deals were announced offshore UK in the third quarter of 2014, down slightly on the five transactions signed off in the second quarter, and significantly reduced from [...]
Rolls-Royce flying high after new $440m Norwegian deal October 9, 2014 ROLLS-Royce has been selected to supply Norwegian with Trent 1000 engines for nine additional Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner planes and has been signed up for a maintenance and servicing contract worth $440m (£272m). The deal will see Norwegian’s leased planes powered by the Trent 1000-TEN, which Rolls-Royce claims boasts the “best through-life fuel efficiency, lowest emissions [...]
Moody’s warns that Russia may prompt Ukraine state to default October 9, 2014 UKRAINE’S government could begin to default on its debts if Russia calls in a $3bn (£1.86bn) loan made to the troubled state late last year, analysts at Moody’s warned yesterday. The state’s debt to GDP ratio is set to rise above 60 per cent this year, breeching the terms of the Russian loan and thus [...]
Ithaca Energy production falls short after problem summer October 9, 2014 ITHACA Energy’s share price fell by almost seven per cent yesterday after a third-quarter trading update revealed that production had failed to meet the predicted level. The company reported average production of 11,600 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) and said it now anticipated full-year production of 12,500 boepd for 2014, whereas guidance production [...]
Espirito Santo Financial Group files for bankruptcy after Luxembourg court denies protection request October 9, 2014 One of the groups behind bailed out Portuguese lender Espirito Santo has filed for bankruptcy after it was denied protection from creditors. Espirito Santo Financial Group (ESFG), which once owned 25 per cent of the main banking group Espirito Santo, was denied protection by a court in Luxembourg last Friday alongside its subsidiary Espirito Santo [...]
Brent crude falls below June 2012 price ahead of Opec meeting October 9, 2014 BRENT crude oil prices continued to slide yesterday, dipping below $91 a barrel for the first time since June 2012. Despite unrest in many parts of the Middle East, prices have been falling for three months, with many experts blaming a combination of oversupply and unyielding US shale gas production. Michael Hewson, head analyst at [...]