Happy national sickie day February 3, 2014 More Brits will pull a sickie today than any other day of the year, according to an ITV Daybreak poll. The first Monday of February is being branded as "national sickie day" as workers try to avoid the horror of a cold Monday morning commute. The survey found that taking a personal day under false [...]
Eurozone manufacturing growth at 32 month high February 3, 2014 A revived manufacturing sector, or a dead cat bounce? Markit's Eurozone manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) came in at 54 in January, up from 52.7 in December. Economists had forecast a jump to just 53.9. Any number above 50 implies expansion, so this headline figure suggests the sector is growing more rapidly. Berenberg's Rob Wood [...]
Digital advertising on the street: Why posters are no longer static February 3, 2014 @LiamWardProud WITH online marketing campaigns accounting for an ever greater share of advertising budgets, digital posters and billboards are catching up fast. There were over 79,000 digital out of home (OOH) advertising sites in the UK in 2013, according to a recent report by OOH specialist agency Kinetic. This figure is set to grow to [...]
Digital natives are having tech children and creating a tidal wave of disruption | City A.M. February 3, 2014 THE NEXT time you are puzzled by an app on your smartphone, the chances are that your three year-old will have the answer. An astonishing 57 per cent of children aged three to five can operate at least one mobile app, up from 19 per cent in 2012. The third anniversary of the Digital Diaries [...]
Sainsbury’s takes full ownership of banking arm from Lloyds February 3, 2014 Sainsbury’s has confirmed it’s taken full ownership of Sainsbury's Bank, having completed buying the remaining 50 per cent shareholding from Lloyds Banking Group. The supermarket announced back in May 2013 that it would acquire the rest of its banking arm, which is now a wholly owned subsidiary of the company. The transaction was completed on [...]
Rexam shares climb on $805m sale February 3, 2014 British multinational packaging maker Rexam has announced this morning that Montagu Private Equity – a European firm – has agreed to pay $805m (£490m) in cash for its healthcare packaging unit. The deal will see “around £450m” returned to shareholders. The business in question has three divisions. Rexam added that it’s still in discussions over [...]
What hamburgers can tell us about the Norwegian krone February 3, 2014 You might not think to base your financial forecasts on takeaway trends. But The Economist's somewhat tongue in cheek "Big Mac index" has been offering investors a foreign exchange indicator, based on McDonald's famous burger of course, since 1986. The purpose of the index is to compare the prices of the same good – the [...]
Smith & Nephew agrees $1.7bn deal for joints specialist Arthrocare February 3, 2014 Global medical technology business Smith & Nephew has announced an agreement to buy Arthrocare for $1.7bn. The British-based company will acquire the US medical devices company for a total consideration of $1.7bn and an enterprise value of $1.5bn. It’ll pay $48.25 per Arthrocare share in cash. Smith & Nephew said Anrthrocare’s shoulder anchor innovation technology [...]
Falling gold price tarnishes Randgold profits February 3, 2014 In 2013, gold miner Randgold Resources hiked gold production to record levels and cut the total cash cost per ounce. It also lined up its operations to exceed the million-ounce mark for the first time this year, according to the company's for the quarter and year to December. In the wake of increased production, gold [...]
BBA Aviation sells APPH for $128m February 3, 2014 Aviation services company BBA Aviation has said this morning that it's completed the sale of its share capital of APPH entities to aerospace firm Heroux-Devtek for $128m (£77.9m). APPH, which specialises in landing gear and hydraulic sub-systems, has an estimated revenue of $76.8m and $7.2m of underlying operating profit for the year ending 31 December [...]