Coca-Cola bottler sees sales dip on difficult market conditions November 7, 2013 Coca-Cola's second largest bottler – Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company – has reported profit before tax of €194.0m (£163m) in the three months to 27 September. In the same period last year, profit stood at €186.1m (£156.5m). (Release) Volume declined by three percent in the quarter, down four per cent in emerging markets and two per cent in developing [...]
What you need to know before the open – 07/11 November 7, 2013 A couple of things of note today. We've got US GDP and, at the same time, European Central Bank president Mario Draghi will be speaking. The press conference will be interesting in terms of what Draghi has to say, after the mounting speculation as to whether the bank will cut rates today or hold off [...]
Morrisons sales down as store loses out in convenience and online shopping November 7, 2013 Morrison Supermarkets saw like-for-like sales down 2.4 per cent in the 13 weeks to 3 November, with "subdued" consumer confidence being paired with the store's "low exposure" to the key growth areas of convenience and online. Including fuel, sales were down three per cent. Chief executive Dalton Philips commented that the market is "tough". (Release) [...]
UK must build 1.5m new homes November 6, 2013 Think tank calls for huge construction drive over next five years THE NEXT government must commit to build 1.5m homes by 2020 to stem an emerging social and economic crisis, according to a report released today. Westminster think tank Policy Exchange has calculated that the UK desperately needs to build 300,000 houses every year between [...]
Firms name more women to boards but lack execs November 6, 2013 THE UK’S biggest listed firms are making “steady progress” towards hitting 2015 targets to increase the number of women in their boardrooms, but still failing to hire women for executive roles, according to new figures released this morning. The latest report from the Cranfield School of Management shows that women now make up 19 per cent of [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 07 November 2013 November 6, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES NHS drugs bill frozen for pledge The drug industry has agreed to a near-freeze in the £12bn bill to the NHS of branded medicines over the next five years, in exchange for a political pledge to support increased use of new treatments. The launch of a new Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) yesterday [...]
Eight firms in oil market rigging case revealed November 6, 2013 SHELL, BP, Statoil, Morgan Stanley, Trafigura Beheer, Trafigura, Phibro Trading and Vitol were named as defendants yesterday in a case surrounding accusations of oil market manipulation. Four NYMEX traders have alleged that the North Sea Brent crude oil market has been manipulated by oil majors and trading houses since at least 2002, in a class [...]
World TV sales to droop again November 6, 2013 TV SALES in both advanced and developing economies are on the decline, according to research by IHS released yesterday. The number of TV units shipped in 2013 is due to decline to 226.7m this year, down from 238.2m in 2012. IHS recorded a dip between 2011 and 2012 of seven per cent, down from 255.2m. [...]
Dow Jones hits a record high November 6, 2013 THE DOW JONES yesterday closed at a record high, led by gains in Microsoft and encouraging European economic data. The stock index ended the day up 128.66 points, or 0.82 per cent, at 15,746.88. Microsoft was the biggest gainer on the blue chip Dow index after it was reported the company had narrowed its CEO [...]
Goldman spells out new rules on working hours for its juniors November 6, 2013 GOLDMAN Sachs last night detailed the new rules for its junior employees, aimed at ensuring they work more regular hours. In a memo to remind staff that the so-called ‘Saturday rule’ begins this weekend, junior bankers were told they were “required” to be out of the office from 9pm on Friday until 9am on Sunday. [...]