Investment hits 60-year low as firms hold back on expenditure October 2, 2013 THE UK’s investment dipped to the lowest level seen since in around 60 years during the second quarter of this year, in comparison to the size of the British economy. Despite the apparent beginnings of an economic recovery, business investment is still anaemic. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) referred to “the lowest recorded level [...]
Party members strip off for the Tory conference October 2, 2013 THE CONSERVATIVE party conference shuddered to a halt yesterday, with weary MPs trudging away from Manchester, dreaming of promotion or survival in the forthcoming cabinet reshuffle. But full credit to one female party member who refused to take off her coat while passing through the airport-style security on the way to hear David Cameron’s speech yesterday [...]
Roman remains discovered in Crossrail tunnel October 2, 2013 WORKERS on the Crossrail project have uncovered 20 Roman skulls under Liverpool Street station. The remains, found in a utility tunnel, could be from victims of the Boudicca rebellion against the Romans during the 1st century, some experts believe. “This is an unexpected and fascinating discovery that reveals another piece in the jigsaw of London’s [...]
Olisa set to run for alderman October 2, 2013 KEN Olisa, the business veteran who chairs Restoration Partners, has thrown his bow-tie in the ring for the forthcoming City of London alderman elections. Olisa, known for describing ENRC as “more Soviet than City” shortly after his ejection from the mining group’s board in 2011, will stand in the Ward of Farringdon Within in next [...]
Domino’s Pizza keeps baking strong UK sales October 2, 2013 SHARES in Domino’s Pizza jumped nearly four per cent yesterday after it posted a rise in third quarter underlying sales and said its German expansion plans are back on track. The chain said despite the hot weather, like-for-like sales across its 669 mature UK stores rose four per cent over the 13 weeks to 29 [...]
French court slaps €10m penalty on Ryanair in worker base case October 2, 2013 RYANAIR yesterday vowed to appeal after a French court imposed penalties totalling almost €10m (£8m) on the airline for breaching labour laws. The budget carrier was fined €200,000 and ordered to pay €9m to cover three years of backdated taxes and pension contributions for staff based in Marseille but employed on Irish contracts. Ryanair closed [...]
Analyst Views: Has Domino’s kept the fire going under third quarter sales? October 2, 2013 KARL BURNS PANMURE GORDON“The update is better than expected, despite the warm weather and despite a pretty tough trading environment. The hangover in Germany is known about now and apart from maybe a lack of performance on new openings, trading is pretty strong across all aspects of the business. WAYNE BROWN CANACCORD GENUITY“In a retail [...]
Oriel hires key team from Nomura Code October 2, 2013 ORIEL Securities, the City broking firm, yesterday beefed up its advisory offering and promoted its top equity head to deputy chief executive. The firm has taken on a healthcare and cleanteach team from UK brokerage Nomura Code, headed by Juliet Thompson. In total the team boasts three equity professionals and three corporate financiers. Separately, Eithne [...]
Bridgepoint munches down on Polish biscuit maker Dr Gerard October 2, 2013 PRET A Manger owner Bridgepoint yesterday snapped up a Polish biscuit maker in a bid to capitalise on Poland’s increasingly sweet tooth. Dr Gerard, which started life making gingerbread in the Polish town of Ozarow 20 years ago, will come under the financial control of Bridgepoint after the UK-based private equity group agreed to buy [...]
Spotlight on Financial Fair Play in Football: Giant-killing lawyer sets sights on Euro regulators October 2, 2013 A COURTROOM battle that threatens to derail European football’s new Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules before they have had a chance to change the sport’s landscape is set to start today. Ground-breaking Belgian lawyer Jean-Louis Dupont, who irrevocably altered the transfer system by winning the Bosman ruling in 1995, is leading a challenge to FFP’s [...]