Glaxosmithkline China dismisses more than 100 over bribery scandal that cost company £300m March 7, 2015 GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has booted more than 100 staff in China on the back of its investigations into the corruption scandal that ended with it being fined £300m last year. The company was found guilty last September of bribing doctors to prescribe its medicines, and began an internal investigation to ascertain the extent of the corruption. [...]
Apple is going to join the Dow Jones on 18 March March 6, 2015 Apple is to jump across to the Dow Jones, becoming the fifth highest-ranked company on the index. AT&T will be the casualty, with the switch taking place on 18 March this year. Apple is the world’s largest company, but won’t top the Dow as companies are ranked by share price, not by market cap. The [...]
Heron Tower police raid: The colourful world of Chelsea FC’s forex partner CWM FX March 6, 2015 Only one company in the Heron Tower has alluded to this week’s police raid. We ask who they are… Three days ago police raided offices in the Heron Tower, hauling 13 City workers out of the building and away for questioning. The event has sent shockwaves through the Square Mile; but aside from pub gossip [...]
Lockheed Martin has made a laser that can do this to a truck from a mile away March 6, 2015 We’ve had stealth bombers and drones for a while, it was always just a matter of time until we had lasers, too. US defence company Lockheed Martin has developed a prototype laser weapon that can scorch holes through metal from over a mile away, as this photo shows. Some have termed the device a death-ray, [...]
Quids in: Inside Poundland founder Steve Smith’s £5.7m mansion March 6, 2015 The house comes complete with water feature, although there's no word on whether the Roller is included in the price… (Source: Estates Direct) They say a pound doesn't stretch as far as it once did, but that doesn't seem to be the case for Poundland founder Steve Smith, who has put his Shropshire mansion up [...]
Rangers FC shareholders vote on club’s future at EGM called by Dave King March 6, 2015 Rangers’ shareholders have voted on a resolution to oust the football club's board at a highly anticipated extraordinary general meeting (EGM) today. Dave King, the South African businessman who holds a 14.5 per cent stake in the club, called the EGM to gain control of the board and unseat its four members allied with Sports [...]
So meta: Amazon just opened an online store on Alibaba March 6, 2015 Amazon and Alibaba may be a hair away to declaring themselves official arch-nemeses, but that hasn't prevented the US online retail giant from making the most of the opportunities presented by its rival. Amazon has opened a shop on Alibaba's Tmall, the Chinese tech giant's equivalent of, er, Amazon. What does it all mean? Amazon's [...]
DFS IPO: Shares priced towards bottom of range March 6, 2015 There are plenty of gags about the DFS sale (Q: what are the three things that would survive a nuclear war? A: Cockroaches, termites, the DFS sale), but it looks like that's extending into its IPO. The furniture retailer priced its shares at a bargain 255p today ahead of its IPO. That's towards the bottom [...]
Thomas Cook share price soars after Chinese Conglomerate Fosun International takes five per cent stake March 6, 2015 Thomas Cook's share price soared today after Chinese billionaire Guo Guangchang took a five per cent stake. The tour operator, which staged a marked turnaround after nearly collapsing in 2011, surged 16.2 per cent to 140p per share in early morning trade. The company's shares have risen 9.5 per cent so far this year. Guangchang's conglomerate Fosun [...]
Vodafone just promised minimum 16-week maternity leave to all its female staff globally March 6, 2015 Vodafone has promised female staff across 30 countries a minimum amount of time off when they have a child, making it one of the few companies in the world to introduce a mandatory minimum maternity policy globally. From the end of the year, the telecoms giant will offer women at least 16 weeks of maternity [...]