Goldman Sachs sees M&A “room to run” in 2016, despite global activity dropping after record 2015 April 11, 2016 Goldman Sachs sees "room to run" in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) this year, despite global activity dropping 20 per cent so far in 2016. In a letter to shareholders, chief executive Lloyd Blankfein wrote that equity markets are showing signs of “sustained stabilisation”. And he said Goldman Sachs sees “consolidation opportunities" in industrials, energy, mining, food, media and [...]
Tata Steel to start sales process today April 11, 2016 Tata Steel kicked off the formal process of selling its loss-making UK plants today. So far Liberty House, which is owned by steel tycoon Sanjeev Gupta, is the only company to publicly express interest. Other potential bidders include turnaround specialist Greybull Capital and German steelmaker ThyssenKrupp. Read more: Why the bank bailouts are no model to follow [...]
London house prices: More than 35,000 high-end homes planned in next decade – just as the prime property market starts to falter April 11, 2016 London's prime residential market is already suffering from the early signs of a slowdown but a flood of new properties is coming in the next decade that could exacerbate it further. A new report out today suggests there are 35,000 prime London homes due for construction in the next 10 years – a 40 per [...]
The Daily Mail is considering a Yahoo bid – but what’s up for grabs? April 11, 2016 A surprise bidder has emerged in the race for Yahoo's web business. Joining the likes of US giants Google and Verizon and Time Inc, who have all reportedly put their hat in the ring, is the UK's very own Daily Mail. The newspaper's parent company Daily Mail and General Trust Group (DMGT) is in discussion [...]
EU referendum: Former head of British Chambers of Commerce John Longworth condemns anti-Brexit multinational companies as “short-termist and narrowly focused” April 11, 2016 John Longworth, the former head of the British Chambers of Commerce, has accused large companies campaigning for Britain to remain in the European Union of being “short-termist and narrowly focused”. Longworth stepped down from his position as director-general of the BCC last month after he was suspended for expressing his support for a so-called Brexit. [...]
Trying to sell your house? A third of homes in some London boroughs have cut their asking prices April 11, 2016 Another sign London's housing market might have hit its peak – after new research suggested sellers of as many as a third of homes in some parts of the capital cut asking prices. The research, by property analysis firm Propcision, found sellers in Kensington and Chelsea were the worst-hit, with asking prices on a third [...]
Heathrow passenger traffic reaches record high in March as airport claims it has queue of 30 airlines waiting for slots April 11, 2016 Heathrow is boasting a record month for passengers in March – and using it as further leverage to press its case for expansion. The west London airport saw 6.1 million passengers go through its door last month, up 2.5 per cent on the year before. Larger, quieter, fuller aircraft continued boosted passenger volumes, Heathrow said. Emerging markets drove much [...]
David Cameron to tell MPs: Companies will be criminally liable for employees who facilitate tax evasion April 11, 2016 Companies whose employees facilitate tax evasion will be held criminally liable, David Cameron will tell MPs today. The Prime Minister will address the Commons after a week in which his personal tax affairs came under scrutiny. Cameron was accused of hypocrisy last week by Labour after he confirmed that he had a stake in his [...]
Tesco to accept Sainsbury’s brand match coupons after rival supermarket pulls out of promotional deals April 11, 2016 Promotional deals might be on their way out across the UK's supermarket sector but there is one place where they are still thriving. Tesco has said it will accept customers' brand match coupons issued by Sainsbury's – just days after the rival supermarket said it was shutting down its scheme. Sainsbury's said last week that coupons would no [...]
CMA urges European Commission to force Three or O2 sell-off before approving Telefonica-Hutchison 3G merger April 11, 2016 The head of the CMA has written to the European Commission, warning that the merger between Hutchison 3G and Telefonica would create "a significant impediment to effective competition" in the British telecoms market. The £10.25bn deal, which was agreed in March 2015, has been undergoing a lengthy probe by the European Commission. In January Ofcom came out against [...]