Spanish regulator opens probe into claims car sellers fix prices September 4, 2013 SPAIN’S antitrust regulator CNC said yesterday it is investigating possible price-fixing in the country by some of the world’s largest car firms. The probe will examine evidence that affiliates of, among others, Volkswagen, Renault, Peugeot, Toyota, General Motors and Ford shared market-sensitive information to set prices and service contracts. “These are considered very serious (alleged) [...]
Blavod Wines loses £619,000 September 4, 2013 Shares in Blavod Wines and Spirits tumbled over 11 per cent yesterday on news that the drinks brands firm had made an operating loss of £619,000 for the year ending 31 March. Of the losses, £299,000 was due to the cost of an acquisition which was not completed and £320,000 related to ongoing activities. The [...]
Ladbrokes breaks into Australia September 4, 2013 Bookmaker Ladbrokes has broken into the Australian market by buying the owner of online bookmaker Bookmaker.com.au and sports marketing firm Panda Gaming. Ladbrokes said yesterday it had agreed to pay an initial A$22.5m (£13m) for Gaming Investments, giving it a low cost entry into the regulated and growing Australian sports betting market. Launched in February [...]
Panasonic bows out of consumer smartphone race September 4, 2013 PANASONIC will pull out of the smartphone market in Japan and pare its smartphone operations to outsourced production in emerging markets like India, its president said yesterday. The electronics company, which has suffered $15bn (£9.6bn) in losses over its latest two financial years, is staking its future on switching from a consumer gadget maker to [...]
Delta hopes to bolster its fleet with order for 40 Airbus planes September 4, 2013 DELTA Air Lines yesterday ordered 40 Airbus planes in a deal valued at about $5.6bn (£3.58bn) at list prices. The order includes 30 A321 narrowbody planes as well as 10 A330-300 widebody aircraft. The aircraft are scheduled for delivery between 2015 and 2017. Delta operates a fleet of Boeing and Airbus planes. The deal marks [...]
Subsidies to lift gas storage too costly, say MPs September 4, 2013 THE UK decided yesterday against intervening in the energy market to boost gas storage capacity, saying that subsidising projects would be too expensive for taxpayers. Gas stocks in the UK, Europe’s biggest gas consumer, were near depletion last winter when a prolonged cold spell boosted demand. At the time, the government commissioned a report to [...]
Rutland gobbles up a stake in turkey firm Bernard Matthews September 4, 2013 SPECIALIST turnaround firm Rutland Partners has bought a stake in turkey producer Bernard Matthews. As a result of the deal Rutland partners David Wingfield and Paul Cartwright will gain seats on the board. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed, but Rutland is believed to have paid around £25m for the stake. The group, [...]
Mining mergers plunge as fall in prices weighs September 4, 2013 MINING M&A activity worldwide plunged in the first half of the year as falling commodity and equity prices dented confidence, according to fresh research published today. Deal volume was down 31 per cent in the six months from January to June compared to a year ago, while its value plunged a staggering 74 per cent, [...]
Staffline helped by Welfare to Work and growing recruitment September 4, 2013 RECRUITMENT and outsourcing group Staffline yesterday topped forecasts with a 32 per cent surge in underlying profits for the first six months of the year. Revenues rose 14 per cent to £187.2m, while underlying profits before tax jumped to £4.9m. Staffline said its Welfare to Work programme in Birmingham delivered “significant numbers of long term [...]
Safestore bullish despite drop in revenues as names new boss September 4, 2013 SAFESTORE, a provider of self-storage for both personal and business customers, yesterday said they were confident for the full year despite a decline in third-quarter revenue. The company, which operates over 100 self-storage centres in London, saw revenue slip to £24.3m in the past three months, compared to £24.9m a year ago. The company said [...]