Gym Group IPO: Fitness chain warms up ahead of a £300m London market listing August 2, 2015 The owners of low-cost fitness chain Gym Group are eyeing a £300m float on the London stock market just over a year after abandoning plans to merge with rival Pure Gym. Phoenix Equity Partners, which bought controlling stake in the business in 2013, is understood to have held talks with bankers regarding a potential market [...]
Small businesses growing amid underwhelming export figures August 2, 2015 Small-and medium-sized manufacturers saw growth in the three months to July, despite a dramatic fall in export prices, according to a new survey out today. According to the latest Confederation of British Industry (CBI) SME trends survey, companies reported steady growth in domestic orders, a rise in output in line with expectations and a slight [...]
Number of complaints about energy services to Ombudsman spike August 2, 2015 Complaints over poor energy services are on the rise, with mediator Ombudsman Services reporting a 55 per cent rise in dissatisfied customers this year. Over 35,000 complaints have been lodged to the mediator since January – up sharply from the same period in 2014. Despite the annual rise in complaints, the organisation said [...]
Greek shares anticipated to plunge as much as 20 per cent when stock exchange reopens August 2, 2015 The Athens Stock Exchange is anticipated to tumble by as much as 20 per cent as traders expect a tumultuous day of trading when the Greek stock market reopens tomorrow after a five-week closure. “The possibility of seeing even a single share rise in tomorrow’s session is almost zero,” said Takis Zamanis, chief trader at [...]
The government’s RBS share sell-off is about to begin: Here’s what you need to know August 2, 2015 This week, George Osborne is due to kick start the government's sale of its 78 per cent stake in Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). Read more: Mansion House Speech 2015: Chancellor George Osborne will start government RBS sell-off as soon as possible The chancellor's plan to offload the shares was announced during his Mansion [...]
Thirty years of mosquitoes, failed trials and few financial rewards: The rocky road to creating the world’s first malaria vaccine August 2, 2015 “I screamed with joy and pulled up at the side of the highway, but when I tried to push the clutch and start the car I couldn't because I was too overwhelmed,” says Moncef Slaoui as he recalls the moment he found out all the bites, blood and days spent poring over lab results had [...]
Greek markets to reopen on Monday July 31, 2015 After a five-week shutdown, the Greek stock market will reopen on Monday, it has been reported. CNBC said Costas Botopoulos, the head of the Hellenic Capital Market Commission, confirmed the Athens Stock Exchange will open on Monday. The exchange has been closed since 29 June, when the government imposed strict capital controls limiting people to [...]
Afren share price timeline: What went wrong? July 31, 2015 A torrid year for oil producer Afren came to a bitter end today when it called in the administrators, having failed to agree a new funding deal with lenders. The London-listed company – which was unceremoniously turfed out of the FTSE 250 earlier this year – is one of the first casualties of oil prices, [...]
Lloyds share price falls as profits come in below expectations while total PPI bill surges July 31, 2015 Shares in Lloyds were down 2.21 per cent this afternoon to 83.81p per share after profits missed expectations and it announced a £1.4bn provision to cover the cost of mis-selling payment protection insurance (PPI). The figures The state-backed bank said pre-tax profit rose 38 per cent to £1.19bn in the six months to the end of [...]
Oil producer Afren goes into administration July 31, 2015 The story of embattled oil producer Afren came to a sorry end today after the company called in the administrators, having been unable to agree a new funding deal with its lenders. "The board believes that all the possible routes have now been explored during the course of this process, which was subject to a [...]