Soaring oil prices fuel London markets October 5, 2021 Soaring oil prices fuelled industrial megacaps this morning, pulling London markets away from yesterday’s losses. The capital’s premier index added 0.60 per cent to reach 7,052.75 points during the first couple hours of trading today. The likes of Shell and BP were boosted this morning by oil prices reaching a seven-year high, climbing above $80 [...]
Helena Morrissey criticises HSBC and City of London as she calls for dump of China stock October 5, 2021 City insider Baroness Helena Morrissey has called on investors to ditch their stakes in Chinese companies due to the accusations of human rights abuses in the country. Morrissey, a chair for AJ Bell, also criticised HSBC and the City of London Corporation for their stance on China, as the bank alongside Standard Chartered, had last [...]
Food and beverage M&A activity at highest since 2010 October 5, 2021 UK food and beverage M&A market activity was at its highest since 2010 this summer. Deal value between May and August, was at an estimated £3.9bn, according to corporate finance house Oghma Partners’ latest report. The year-to-date total value of recorded deals are estimated at £5.8bn – the nearest annual total was that 2015’s figure [...]
FinnCap shares soar after M&A deal frenzy hikes revenue by 55 per cent October 4, 2021 Shares in Finncap, the AIM-listed tech and life sciences small cap broker, closed 4.29 per cent higher today after the firm posted robust half year results. FinnCap said that unaudited revenue was up 55 per cent to £32m in the six months to 30 September this year, after the firm advised on £1bn worth of M&A [...]
Looming Opec supply increase propels oil prices to near-decade high October 4, 2021 Oil prices shot up to their highest level in almost a decade today after the cartel of oil producing countries said it would continue to flood the market with supply. International benchmark US WTI jumped 2.4 per cent to $77.67, the most a barrel has cost since 2014. The gains follow six straight positive weeks [...]
TikTok Europe turnover fattens from advertising spend as losses grow fourfold October 4, 2021 TikTok’s European turnover surged by 545 per cent to $171m last year as the social media platform raked in cash from advertisers’ increased spending, a new company filing revealed today. According to the Companies House filing, the Chinese-owned firm has invested in scaling its European side of the business through new hires and increased sales [...]
Bulb keeping options open amid rising prices and takeover speculation October 4, 2021 Green energy firm Bulb are keeping their options open as speculation increases that it could soon become a takeover target. Ovo Energy are the latest believed to be sniffing around Bulb, which serves some 1.5m customers. Octopus Energy were also rumoured to be weighing up a bid. The Sunday Telegraph first reported Ovo’s interest. Bulb [...]
Issa brothers’ EG Group acquires UK’s second-largest bakery business October 4, 2021 Petrol station forecourt giant EG Group has acquired the country’s second-largest bakery business, Cooplands The Issa brothers’ firm has acquired CS Food Group Holdings Limited, which operates a number of bakeries that produce and distribute fresh food to some 180 stores and cafes. The bakery business mostly operates across the north-east and Yorkshire regions and [...]
French Connection sold to consortium led by second-largest shareholder October 4, 2021 Clothing brand French Connection has been sold to a consortium including its second-largest shareholder in a deal valuing it at £29m. The firm – which operates 150 stores and concessions across the world – has accepted a 30p-per-share offer, after struggling with years of losses. It represented a 30 per cent premium to the share [...]
OECD slams ESG investing for being toothless at tackling climate change October 4, 2021 The organisation representing the world’s richest countries has slammed ESG investing for being toothless at fighting climate change. In a damning report released today, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) hit out at ESG investing for lacking “clarity” and “transparency”. “Data inconsistencies, lack of comparability of ESG criteria and rating methodologies, as well [...]