Shareholders slow to invest in President Energy’s fundraising March 11, 2019 President Energy fell short of its maximum fundraising limit today, managing to find commitments from shareholders to buy £3.5m worth of new stock. The oil and gas explorer said it was still able to push on with its plans, as it looked to accelerate the expansion programme in Argentina’s Rio Negro province. Read more: British [...]
Forget Brexit, corporate debt is a bigger issue March 11, 2019 As a few of you might have been told many times already, today is the latest Brexit D-Day for the UK, and for Theresa May in particular. Now, despite the fact that I am – at the moment that you are reading this – down on a chilly College Green in Westminster reporting on the latest [...]
Shares hit by investor shyness of Russian firms at gold miner Polymetal, despite strong results – CEO March 11, 2019 Investor uncertainty around Russian firms has held back Polymetal’s share price even though sanctions have not hit the company, its boss said yesterday as the miner showed gold sales up 10 per cent. Tensions between Russia and the west have not impacted operations at the company, chief executive Vitaly Nesis said. Read more: Russia denies 'rubbing [...]
British producers pump out more oil as small explorers fill vacuum left by majors March 11, 2019 UK oil production rose by nearly nine per cent last year, figures show, as small explorers step into a gap left by oil majors. Oil production rose 8.9 per cent to 1.1m barrels per day while gas output dropped 3.5 per cent to 610,000 barrels per day, the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) said. Read [...]
Law firm DWF raises £95m in first-ever main market legal listing March 11, 2019 Law firm DWF has today raised £95m in the first main market float for a law firm, valuing the business at £366m. DWF is by far the largest of the handful of law firms to have listed on the stock market and is the first firm with a large international footprint to have gone public. [...]
Gold miner Barrick drops hostile bid for Newmont as firms agree joint venture March 11, 2019 Barrick Gold has dropped its bid for rival Newmont after the two agreed to merge their Nevada mines, the companies confirmed today. The two parties said they would create the world’s single largest gold producer with a combined output of over 4m ounces of gold last year. The deal promises to unlock $5bn in synergies, [...]
Sign of the times: Smart speakers in and crockery out of UK inflation goods basket March 11, 2019 Bluetooth speakers, flavoured tea and washing gel have been added to the “basket of goods” used to calculate inflation in the UK, while crockery sets and hi-fi systems have been shelved. Read more: Inflation drops to two-year low of 1.8 per cent The Office for National Statistics (ONS) outlined changes this morning to the list [...]
Softbank unveils $500m Softbank Acceleration Fund March 11, 2019 Softbank has launched a new global tech fund with up to $500m (£384.68m) to pour into early-stage startups. Read more: Softbank's Vision Fund pump $940m into robotics firm Nuro The Japanese telecoms giant could launch the Softbank Acceleration Fund as early as next month, according to Reuters. The new fund – a rebrand of Seoul-based [...]
If London is to continue to thrive, MPs must take a no-deal Brexit off the table March 11, 2019 There is no denying that trying to sell London to international investors this week of all weeks presents a challenge. Inevitably, uncertainty caused by Brexit has made some businesses more hesitant to commit further to operations in London than they would have been otherwise. Looking beyond the imminent drama in Westminster, however, I have reason [...]
UK hiring intentions decline for second month in a row as Brexit looms March 11, 2019 UK firms intend to hire fewer people for the second month in a row in a sign of Brexit uncertainty weighing on the jobs market, a new study has said. British companies said they were looking to take on fewer new employees in the six months from February than they were from January, according to the [...]