BT fined £800,000 by Ofcom for deaf service failure March 17, 2015 British Telecom (BT) has been handed an £800,000 fine from media regulator Ofcom for failing to offer adequate services for hearing-impaired customers for five months. The fine relates to BT’s failure to bring in its Next Generation text relay system from between April and September 2014. The system translates voice-to-text on various devices, including PCs, [...]
BHP Billiton spin-off in good stead as debt is halved March 17, 2015 Commodities group BHP Billiton is set to spin-off its weaker assets with less debt than originally expected through fledgling mining company South32. South32’s portfolio of mines and refineries has long been overshadowed by BHP’s iron, petroleum and copper businesses. The smaller business contributed post-tax profits of $738m (£500m) in the last six months of 2014, [...]
Sony share price jumps following increase in operating profit March 17, 2015 Sony’s share price opened five per cent higher on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday, after the company revised its third-quarter operating profit up 2.2 per cent to 182bn yen (£1bn). The company increased its operating profit for the year from the originally reported 178bn yen, which it said was based on [...]
Afren share price falls 14 per cent as sell-off continues March 17, 2015 Embattled oil producer Afren continued to bleed today as investors sold off shares for the third session running. Shares in the Africa-focused group, which recently slipped out of the FTSE 250, fell 14.3 per cent to 3.2p today. This comes after the company's shares closed down 28 per cent on Friday, and by 24.3 per [...]
Good Energy profits down as warm weather takes its toll March 17, 2015 Good Energy revenues and customer numbers rose last year, but profits were held back by warm weather. The figures During the 12 months to 31 December, Good Energy's pre-tax profits declined by 33 per cent to £2.2m. The company put this down to “challenging trading conditions resulting from the warmest year since records began”, as [...]
Just Eat had a great 2014, and this year is looking just as good as international expansion continues March 17, 2015 Just Eat had a year of growth, with users, revenue and orders reaching new heights. The figures Just Eat's revenue for the year ended 31 December was £157.0m, marking a 62 per cent increase from 2013's figure of £96.8m. This was driven by a 52 per cent increase in orders and a 37 per [...]
Co-op Travel changes name to Clarity as new owners cut ties March 16, 2015 Co-operative Travel Management moved to cut the final ties with its former owner yesterday after relaunching as Clarity Travel Management. The corporate travel agent was run as a joint venture between the troubled mutual and Thomas Cook before the pair sold it to the Saudi-based Al Tayyar Group last year. The sale formed part of [...]
The Manchester Building Society sues accountants Grant Thornton March 16, 2015 The Manchester Building Society yesterday accused Grant Thornton of negligence in its auditing, filing a claim for £49m in damages from the accountants. The mutual lender said Grant Thornton gave it incorrect advice on hedge accounting. The legal action is “for breach of contract, negligence and breach of statutory duty relating to audit services and [...]
PureCircle sweetens sales as big brands adopt stevia products March 16, 2015 Sweetner producer PureCircle announced sales of $43.2m (£29.1m) for the six-month period to 31 December 2014. This represents a 24 per cent increase on the previous year’s $34.9m. The company, which uses the sugar substitute stevia, said revenue was driven higher by its incorporation into high-profile brands such as Pepsi and Coca-Cola. “Stevia is now [...]
Cheap Ryanair flights across the Atlantic are coming with routes to 14 US cities are being planned within the next five years March 16, 2015 Ryanair has set its sights on new horizons, with ambitious plans to provide long-haul budget flights across the Atlantic The low-cost Irish airline is planning new routes between as many as 14 cities in the US and Europe within the next four to five years. The Ryanair board has approved growth plans which include transatlantic [...]