South Africa’s platinum output choked as workers go on strike January 23, 2014 SOUTH Africa’s three largest platinum miners yesterday confirmed in separate statements that their workers had gone on strike and that production would be affected. The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu), the dominant union representing the companies’ workers, had informed Lonmin, Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) and Impala Platinum (Implats) that they intended to go [...]
Petropavlovsk’s production on track but low gold price weighs January 23, 2014 THE CHAIRMAN of Petropavlovsk yesterday warned that there might be more job cuts and that management bonuses would be cancelled once again, as the Russia-focused gold miner prepares for another challenging year. Peter Hambro, who founded the FTSE 250-quoted company, told City A.M. that “life is not easy for any of the miners” and that [...]
NextEnergy Solar Fund plans a London flotation to raise £150m January 23, 2014 NEXTENERGY Solar Fund, a Guernsey-domiciled investment company focused on solar energy assets in the UK, yesterday said it plans to launch an initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange to raise £150m. Next Energy manages and monitors over 1,100 solar power plants, with an estimated asset value of £3.1bn. It is expected that the [...]
Severstal sales up four per cent January 23, 2014 Russian steel miner Severstal yesterday celebrated “healthier market conditions” as it announced a four per cent annual rise in consolidated sales of steel to 15.1m products in its operational results for last year. The Moscow-listed company, whose global depository receipts – known as GDRs – are traded on the London Stock Exchange, said the “overall [...]
Kenmare Resources output up January 23, 2014 Irish mining company Kenmare Resources yesterday reported increased production in the fourth quarter of 2013, despite a fire which hurt output. The firm’s Moma Mine in Mozambique, which was hit by the fire, mined 7,655,600 tonnes of ore, 120 per cent more than in the fourth quarter of 2012. Kenmare suffered a decrease in Zircon [...]
Kentz earnings meet expectations January 23, 2014 FTSE 250-quoted engineering firm Kentz yesterday said that its earnings per share for 2013 are in line with expectations, reflecting double-digit growth on 2012. The company also said that it completed its acquisition of US operator Valerus Field Solutions on 3 January for $435m (£262m). “I am pleased to report that we are starting the [...]
City Moves for 24 January 2014 | Who’s switching jobs January 23, 2014 SEI The investment management firm has announced the appointment of Brett Williams as UK managing director of its wealth platform. He joins from LW2 Private Equity Partnership, where he was a partner. Prior to that, he held senior roles at Cofunds, Selestia and Skandia UK. PwC The professional services firm has appointed Philip Smith to its [...]
Best of the Brokers for 24 January 2014 January 23, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com WH SMITH UBS keeps its neutral rating and nudged its target price 50p higher to 1,050p following the retailer’s Christmas trading update. The broker is cheered by WH Smith’s first like-for-like rise in travel sales since 2009 and thinks rising air traffic could boost [...]
London Report: Sharpest fall in the FTSE since turn of the year January 23, 2014 BRITAIN’S main equity index yesterday suffered its biggest one-day fall this year, weighed down by disappointing US economic data and weak updates from Easyjet and Pearson. Global stocks extended losses in the afternoon as data showed US manufacturing growth slowed in January for the first time in three months. The data further undermined sentiment towards [...]
New York Report: China’s factory data sees stock fall on Wall St January 23, 2014 US STOCKS fell yesterday, with the Dow Jones industrial average recording its third consecutive day of losses, as risky assets sold off in wake of disappointing manufacturing data in China. Financials and materials stocks were the day’s biggest losers while telecom services was the only positive sector as investors sold growth-oriented stocks and bought defensive [...]