Ryanair appeal over Aer Lingus bid hit by court rejection in UK December 13, 2012 EUROPE’S largest budget carrier, Ryanair, yesterday lost its appeal to block an investigation into its near-30 per cent stake in rival Aer Lingus. The UK’s Court of Appeal ruled that it is within the jurisdiction of the Competition Commission (CC) to investigate Ryanair’s ownership. The CC is investigating the case after the Office of Fair [...]
Airbus confirms $9.4bn AirAsia order in boost to Welsh factory December 13, 2012 EUROPEAN planemaker Airbus said yesterday that Malaysian group AirAsia was the customer behind a previously announced order for 100 A320 aircraft worth around $9.4bn (£5.8bn) at list prices. The deal, which provides AirAsia with an additional 64 A320neo and 36 A320ceo aircraft, was formally unveiled at Airbus’s wing assembly plant in Broughton, Wales, in the [...]
Danone seeks more savings as austerity in Europe dents sales December 13, 2012 FRENCH food group Danone said yesterday that it plans to cut jobs in Europe in an attempt to save €200m (£162.2m) over the next two years. The company, the biggest yoghurt maker in the world, said job losses will be restricted to managerial roles, and will be based on voluntary departures, but did not comment [...]
Rolls-Royce secures Brazil deal December 13, 2012 British engineering giant Rolls-Royce yesterday said it had secured a £100m contract to supply integrated power and propulsion systems for seven offshore drill ships for Brazilian oil company Petrobras. The ships will be built at the Atlantico Sul shipyard, and will support the extraction of oil from between 2,000 and 3,000 metres below the Atlantic [...]
Suffolk win for Balfour Beatty December 13, 2012 Infrastructure group Balfour Beatty said yesterday it had been selected as preferred bidder on a £200m contract to maintain highways in Suffolk. The contract, initially for five years, has the possibility of an extension to 10 years. If approved, Balfour Beatty will be responsible for designing and implementing highway maintenence and improvement works in the [...]
Adobe Systems earnings rocket December 13, 2012 Software maker Adobe Systems, the firm behind Photoshop and Acrobat, yesterday posted a higher fourth-quarter profit on lower expenses. Net income rose to $222.3m (£138m) from $173.7m a year earlier. Revenue was flat at $1.15bn. Deferred revenue grew by $59.3m to a record $619.6m, the firm said in its fourth quarter figures yesterday, while subscriptions [...]
Who’s switching jobs December 13, 2012 Carmignac Gestion Vincent Steenman has been appointed to the asset management firm’s portfolio management team. He joins from Zadig Asset Management, where he was a partner. Steenman has also held roles at the LVMH Group Arnault Family Office and Morgan Stanley. Allele Fund John Shea has been appointed to the investment fund’s advisory board. He [...]
Best of the Brokers December 13, 2012 JOHNSTON PRESS Panmure Gordon has kept a strong “buy” rating on the publishing group and increased its target price to 18p. The broker says being elevated to the FTSE Small Cap index will have a positive effect on shares. TRAVIS PERKINS UBS has kept its “neutral” rating for Travis Perkins, and lowered its price target [...]
FTSE 100 down as Eurozone outlines banking supervision rules December 13, 2012 The leading share index was trading around 0.2 per cent down this morning, as Europe finance ministers clinched a deal to give the European Central Bank new powers to supervise Eurozone banks from 2014. Energy services firm Wood Group was the biggest blue chip faller, sinking more than 2.5 per cent in early deals. In [...]
Fracking to resume in the UK December 13, 2012 The government confirmed this morning that fracking would return to the UK with immediate effect. Fracking, the process of exploring shale gas, was temporarily banned in in the UK since last summer, after earth tremors were measured near a drilling site close to Blackpool. Energy secretary Ed Davey this morning said the government was lifting [...]