Poundland brings forward competition probe into 99p Stores deal May 6, 2015 Bargain store Poundland has bought forward a competition probe into its offer to buy rival 99p Stores for £55m. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) previously said the tie-up could create "a realistic prospect of less competition" in 80 local areas – and an additional 12 areas where they will be competitors in the near future. It said [...]
Wetherspoon is holding its own in the face of the supermarket price war May 6, 2015 It may be at a “great disadvantage” to supermarkets, but JD Wetherspoon still managed to report an increase in sales. The figures In an interim management statement, the company announced like for like sales were up 1.7 per cent in the 13 weeks to 26 April, and 3.6 per cent for the financial year to [...]
US economy set for lift after slow start to 2015 May 5, 2015 An expansion in the US trade deficit suggests that economic growth is likely to have been negative at the start of the year, when second estimates are released at the end of May. The first official estimate last week showed that the US economy slowed to near-stagnation in the first three months of the year. However, [...]
End of the Terry Leahy era for Tesco as Ken Hanna and Stuart Chambers step down May 5, 2015 The last two non-exec directors who served during Terry Leahy’s reign at Tesco are to step down, in another shake-up of its board following last year’s profit scandal. Tesco said yesterday that Ken Hanna and Stuart Chambers would retire at the firm’s annual general meeting on 26 June, after serving on the board for six [...]
Former Lehman Brothers bankers in line for healthier pension payouts May 5, 2015 More than 2,000 ex-Lehman bankers are set for bigger pension payments after bosses of the retirement plan struck a £675m deal to offload it to an insurance firm. Members of the Lehman Brothers Pension Scheme will see payment restrictions – put into place after the bank’s dramatic collapse nearly seven years ago – lifted in [...]
Salesforce.com share price climbs on Microsoft takeover reports May 5, 2015 Shares in Salesforce.com jumped 6.2 per cent yesterday, after it was reported that Microsoft is considering a bid for the cloud software provider. Salesforce shares rose from $71.4 to $75.82 after which trading was temporarily halted. Microsoft is evaluating a bid after Salesforce was approached by another potential buyer, Bloomberg reported, citing people with [...]
UBS’ investment bank roars back with deal successes and soaring profits May 5, 2015 If you believe everything US investment bankers tell you, it is only a matter of time before a handful of American giants rule the world, and Europe’s challengers crumble into the dust. You can see why they are so confident, with Britain splitting its would-be universal banks with a ring-fence, and a series of [...]
Construction growth drops on General Election uncertainty May 5, 2015 Growth in the building sector fell to its slowest pace in almost two years in April, according to an influential study from Markit yesterday. The purchasing managers’ index fell to 54.2 from 57.8 in March – still firmly above the 50-mark that indicates growth, but a sharp slowdown in the pace of rising output. The [...]
EU mulls McDonald’s tax probe: Margrethe Vestager considers investigation into sweetheart deals May 5, 2015 The EU’s competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager is considering adding McDonald’s to the list of companies being investigated over sweetheart tax deals. The Danish commissioner is weighing up an inquiry following claims by campaigners and unions of an alleged deal with Luxembourg that allowed the fast-food chain to massively reduce its tax bill on European sales. A [...]
Ryanair lays on the charm and sells more seats May 5, 2015 Budget airline Ryanair’s passenger numbers soared in April, jumping 16 per cent on the same month last year. During April, there were 9m Ryanair passengers, up from 7.8m in April 2014. Rolling annual traffic was up to 91.8m passengers. The Irish airline’s load factor, an industry measure of how much of an airline’s capacity is [...]