Ministers insist High Speed 2 is worth building September 9, 2013 MINISTERS defended the controversial High Speed 2 (HS2) rail link between London and the north yesterday, following a damning report from the public accounts committee about the economic case for the project. Chancellor George Osborne insisted he was “passionately in favour” of the £42.6bn scheme, while transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin told the BBC “it is [...]
Icap enters late stage talks to put Libor rigging claims to rest September 9, 2013 ICAP, the interdealer broker, is in late stage talks with US and UK regulators to settle longstanding claims over the Libor rigging scandal for about £70m. The broker, led by City grandee Michael Spencer, is understood to be nearing a deal with the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority to pay it £20m and US Department of [...]
Upgrade work shuts out some Boris Bike users September 9, 2013 CASUAL users of Boris Bikes will not be able to use the cycle hire scheme on Saturday night or Sunday, as TfL upgrades the docking sites ahead of expansion in south and west London. TfL said the work will make it easier for members to view all the journeys they made in the past year [...]
Glaxo offloads drinks brands in £1.35bn deal September 9, 2013 JAPANESE firm Suntory Beverage & Food yesterday agreed to buy GlaxoSmithKline’s (GSK) Ribena and Lucozade brands for £1.35bn, in one of the largest deals in the sector so far this year. British pharmaceuticals group GSK put the two drinks brands up for sale in February as part of chief executive Sir Andrew Witty’s plans to [...]
Bottom Line: Suntory pays high price for global plans September 9, 2013 PUMPED up on sugary soft drinks, it didn’t take the Glaxo and Suntory execs long to seal a deal. Though everyone from AG Barr to private equity houses Blackstone to Permira was touted as a potential buyer, the Japanese group emerged as the front runner early on and stood its ground. Yesterday’s price – well [...]
Koch brothers move into electronics with $7.2bn Molex deal September 9, 2013 PRIVATELY owned Koch Industries said yesterday it will buy Molex, a maker of electronic connectors for companies including Apple, for about $7.2bn to give the billionaire Koch brothers a way to diversify from their traditional holdings in energy, chemicals and paper. Koch Industries, which owns brands such as Brawny paper towels, Dixie Cups and Lycra, [...]
Primark growth boosts AB Food full-year profits September 9, 2013 ASSOCIATED British Foods (ABF) said yesterday it expects to post forecast- beating profits for the second half of the year as sales at the discount clothing chain Primark continue to surge. Full-year sales at Primark, which accounts for about a third of the group’s profit, are expected to be 22 per cent ahead of last [...]
Analyst Views: How has AB Foods’ update impacted your outlook for the year? September 9, 2013 MARTIN DEBOO | INVESTEC“This year is set to beat expectations on a strong finish from Primark…But in the other major profit centre of sugars the outlook in 2014 and beyond is downbeat, with EU sugar prices falling fast and further pricing pressures elsewhere …We expect to be upgrading our 2013 numbers a tad but downgrading [...]
Bumi shares slump after miner warns of separation plan delay September 9, 2013 TROUBLED miner Bumi’s share price dropped almost three per cent yesterday, after it announced that there is now “less certainty around the timing and status” of its separation from the Bakrie Group. A circular regarding the proposed deal was scheduled to be sent round to shareholders in September but yesterday the FSTE 250 firm said [...]
Strong US jobs data hints at Fed tapering decision this month September 9, 2013 THE LABOUR market is improving steadily, a top Fed official said yesterday, sustaining expectations the central bank will announce plans to slow down its money printing operations this month. The Fed is buying $85bn (£54.1bn) of market securities each month to stimulate the economy, and has previously said it will slow the pace as the [...]