Former Pru chief Prettejohn appointed Scottish Widows chair April 24, 2014 Lloyds Banking Group has confirmed the appointment of Nick Prettejohn, former chief executive of Lloyd’s of London and Prudential UK and Europe, as chairman of Scottish Widows Group. Prettejohn, who’s also been on the board of the Prudential Regulation Authority and is a member of the BBC Trust, will take up his role in June. [...]
What you need to know before the open April 24, 2014 A higher open’s expected for European markets this morning, following the strong results from Apple and Facebook and despite yesterday’s negative finish. Germany’s latest IFO business survey is expected to be slightly weaker for April, although the positive manufacturing data seen yesterday could also mean a stronger-than-expected surprise. That said, ongoing weakness in China and [...]
Decline in emerging markets slows Unilever sales growth April 24, 2014 Consumer goods giant Unilever has reported underlying sales growth of 3.6 per cent, with emerging markets rising by 6.6 per cent for the first quarter of 2014. However, market growth continued to decline in the emerging economies of South and South East Asia, while developed markets remained relatively fragile despite some improvement in southern Europe. [...]
Any Other Business – 24/4 April 24, 2014 ANYONE wondering if ex-Oriel chief David Knox’s new company name Lazarus refers to his own triumphant return to the City can think again, the former Cazenove bigwig (who lasted only six months at the helm of Oriel) told The Capitalist it’s more about the return of old fashioned values, such as putting clients first. Knox [...]
Asian markets slide after US housing slowdown April 24, 2014 Asian markets are in retreat after the US posted worse than expected home sales and Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe confirmed that a trade deal with the US had not yet been agreed. It was hoped that a successful free trade deal between the US and Japan would be precursor to the completion of the [...]
Facebook and Apple defy the tech critics April 23, 2014 TECHNOLOGY giants Facebook and Apple silenced talk of a tech bubble last night as they trumped all expectations, both delivering record earnings for the first quarter of 2014. Facebook’s booming mobile advertising business led the social network to revenues of $2.5bn (£1.5bn) in the quarter, above the expected $2.36bn, and profit of $642m, up more [...]
Shale gas revolution set to provide over a third of the UK’s energy needs April 23, 2014 OVER one third of the UK’s energy will come from shale gas in the next decade, with 4,000 wells set to be drilled across the country by 2032, a new report claims today. An astonishing 20m homes could be powered by shale gas, according to the government-backed study commissioned by the UK Onshore Operators Group [...]
UK deficit comes down as tax revenues creep higher April 23, 2014 THE UK’S public deficit in 2013-14 dropped further than expected at the start of the fiscal year, according to yesterday’s official figures, but the improvement is being driven by increased tax revenues. The public sector’s net borrowing in the last financial year was £107.7bn, down £7.5bn from the previous year, and just over £12bn lower [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 24 April 2014 April 23, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Deutsche Bank under pressure Deutsche Bank is facing pressure from investors to raise capital amid fears the bank is still not robust enough to cope with a tougher regulatory environment and a slump in global debt markets. Insiders at Germany’s largest lender are understood to accept as a real threat that the European [...]
Professional services jobs boom in London April 23, 2014 THE FINANCIAL services sector could lose its title as the dominant player in London, as a new study predicts a boom in professional services over the next decade. An extra 28,000 workers could be employed in areas like management consulting and law by 2023, according to a study by the City of London Corporation and [...]