Avocet to buy out of hedge October 31, 2013 AFRICA-FOCUSED Avocet Mining said yesterday it is set to buy back all its forward sold production, a hedge that has caused problems for the company since it cut a reserves estimate at its gold mine in Burkina Faso earlier this year. The miner, which inherited the hedging agreement with Macquarie from a takeover deal in [...]
Bumi is close to separating October 31, 2013 BELEAGUERED FTSE 250 miner Bumi yesterday said it is finalising its separation from its co-founder the Bakrie Group, with a circular to be sent to shareholders next week. A meeting to approve the separation is expected to take place in early December.
BG Group shares rise on smaller than expected earnings decline October 31, 2013 FTSE 100-listed oil and gas producer BG Group’s shares rose yesterday after it said earnings fell less than analysts expected in the third quarter. The four per cent decline was due to BG’s decision to cut production in the US, where gas prices have been low and after it sold fewer liquefied natural gas (LNG) [...]
Total’s income plunges in third quarter due to refining margins October 31, 2013 FRENCH oil major Total yesterday posted a 19 per cent decline in net income for the third quarter, hit by narrow refining margins in Europe and a larger exploration expenditure. Income fell to €2.7bn (£2.3bn), with a $400m rise in its exploration bill compared to the same period a year ago weighing on profits. “The [...]
Sony slashes profit outlook on bad TV sales October 31, 2013 SONY cut its full-year profit targets yesterday after slipping to a quarterly net loss as its recovering TV operation relapsed into the red. The Japanese electronics-maker’s worse-than-expected performance, a setback after years of striving to return to its former glories, also featured weak sales of video cameras and a steep slump in personal computers in the [...]
Bayer lowers sales forecasts October 31, 2013 Bayer, Germany’s largest drugmaker, tempered its full-year sales outlook yesterday, saying unfavourable exchange rates were blunting the impact of robust sales of new drugs in the US, Latin America and Japan. The inventor of aspirin and maker of birth-control pill Yasmin said it now forecast full-year sales of about €40bn (£33.8bn), against a previous target [...]
Barrick suspends Andes construction October 31, 2013 Barrick Gold said yesterday it is suspending construction at its Pascua-Lama mine in South America, a surprise reversal on a project that has already cost billions after years of delays and cost over-runs. The world’s top gold producer also reported lower third-quarter earnings, hurt in part by a drop in the price of gold. Earnings [...]
Avon shrinks workforce after loss October 31, 2013 Avon posted weaker-than-expected third quarter sales yesterday, hurt by a big drop in North America and in growing markets like Mexico and Russia, and said the size of its sales force had shrunk. Revenue fell seven per cent to $2.26bn, including the impact from currency fluctuations. Avon reported a net loss of $5.5m compared with [...]
City Moves for 01 November 2013 | Who’s switching jobs October 31, 2013 Legal & General Property The property business has announced the appointment of Imogen Ebbs as a senior asset manager to support its limited price inflation income property fund. She was most recently at Lloyds Banking Group, where she was an associate director in its property solutions division. Baker Tilly The accountancy firm has recruited Winn Faria [...]
Middle Eastern visitors ranked as the top hotel spenders in UK October 31, 2013 MIDDLE Eastern visitors spend more on their stay in the UK than tourists from any other countries, forking out almost 60 per cent more per night on a room than the average rate. Figures released yesterday by the website Hotels.com showed that tourists from countries in the Middle East upped their spending on hotel room [...]