Shire expands with $4.2bn acquisition of rare disease specialist ViroPhama November 11, 2013 UK pharmaceuticals company Shire announced today that it has agreed to buy rare disease specialist ViroPhama. Shire will buy the US drugs company for $4.2bn (£2.6bn) or $50 per share, representing a 27 per cent premium on Friday's closing price. (Release) Shire believes the acquisition will strengthen its rare disease portfolio, to which the company [...]
Admiral turnover reduced by weaker UK market November 11, 2013 Car insurance specialist Admiral Group has announce a seven per cent decline in turnover this morning to £528m in the third quarter to September. The firm remains on track to meet its expectations this year, with international car insurance turnover up 26 per cent on the same period last year. (Release) UK Car insurance turnover [...]
What you need to know before the open – 11/11 November 11, 2013 European markets are expected to open up this morning after their Asian counterparts closed mixed. With little data coming in today, investors are focused on the end of the week. On Thursday, we've got a raft of GDP readings from the Eurozone, a week after the ECB rate cut was announced. Asian markets want [...]
London’s got talent: Capital biggest employer of highly-skilled individuals November 11, 2013 The capital beats New York to top global league table as the biggest employer of highly-skilled individuals LONDON is the best city in the world for jobs in the knowledge economy, a report out today shows, confirming the capital’s status as a global talent magnet. The capital employs 1.5m people in highly-skilled sectors such as [...]
BT defends £897m deal for Champions League rights November 11, 2013 THE BATTLE between Sky and BT for dominance in televised sport came to a head this weekend with the surprise announcement that Champions League matches will be shown exclusively on BT Sport from 2015 as part of a £900m investment by the telecoms giant. New chief executive Gavin Patterson defended the huge price tag, more [...]
Fastest growth on record for England’s businesses November 11, 2013 A MAJOR survey of English firms recorded record growth across the country during October, suggesting that the economy’s recent swing back to growth continued into the start of the fourth quarter. Lloyds’ regional purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for last month found businesses reporting the fastest increase in business activity seen since the survey began in [...]
Firms brimming with optimism for year ahead November 11, 2013 OUTPUT and optimism are on the rise among UK businesses, suggesting that growth will strengthen further in 2014, according to an international accountancy firm. BDO’s latest optimism index, released today, shows particularly strong confidence among manufacturers, but with positive sentiment growing in the services sector too. The headline figure of the index reached 101.7 last [...]
Banks say over 2,000 applied for Help to Buy November 11, 2013 HALIFAX and RBS reported strong interest in the first phase of the government’s Help To Buy scheme this morning, saying they had received more than 2,000 applications in the first month of the programme. Halifax recorded 1,309 applications under the scheme in its first month, while state-backed Royal Bank of Scotland also said today it [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 11 November 2013 November 11, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Fears over abuses in metals markets Britain’s parliamentary financial watchdog has urged regulators to probe potential abuses in metals markets as deeply as they are investigating the scandals over foreign exchange and Libor benchmark interest rates. Andrew Tyrie, chairman of the Treasury select committee, told the Financial Times that MPs were conscious of [...]
Insurer RSA to launch review of its Irish unit November 11, 2013 INSURER RSA has launched an independent review of its Irish business after uncovering problems that led it to issue a second profit warning and suspend three of its top managers last week. Investors were steeling themselves for a share price fall today after the FTSE 100 firm revealed after markets closed on Friday that it [...]