Where to get spooked in the City tomorrow October 29, 2012 WITH Halloween almost upon us, supermarket Asda has conjured up some facts and figures on the annual fright night. Given that the 31 October was a rather insignificant day in the British diary 10 years ago, The Capitalist was surprised to learn that the UK Halloween market is now worth £300m. Poor old Guy Fawkes [...]
Branson the slumdog billionaire October 29, 2012 AVIATION maharajah Richard Branson took to the streets of Mumbai for the launch of Virgin Atlantic’s new Mumbai-London service, which began yesterday. In typical Branson style he was decked head to toe in local dress and sitting on the roof of a taxi while Indian performers and cheerleaders danced around him. However, not even his [...]
Lending jumps as government scheme helps October 29, 2012 LENDING to individuals bounced back in September, data out yesterday showed, as the full impact of the Funding for Lending scheme (FLS) began to be felt. Consumer credit climbed £1.2bn in the month, the Bank of England said, in the second month of the government and Bank of England’s plan to boost lending. Analysts said [...]
Withdrawal of Friends Life a knock to F&C October 29, 2012 F&C ASSET Management suffered £3.7bn in net outflows in the third quarter, as a large planned client withdrawal offset a positive investment performance, the company said yesterday. Assets under management had fallen to £96.8bn at the end of September from £98.2bn at the beginning of July, due in part to a previously announced £2.9bn of [...]
Broadbent: Construction set to start growing again this spring October 29, 2012 PUBLIC sector spending on construction is stabilising and private activity is growing, meaning the sector will at last start to recover early next year, a top policymaker said yesterday. The Bank of England’s Ben Broadbent believes the industry has also begun to overcome its long productivity problems, again contributing to growth. Official data show the [...]
India’s attempts to cut deficit may see interest rates slashed October 29, 2012 INDIA’S central bank faces growing pressure to cut interest rates today for the first time since April after the finance minister pledged to rein in the country’s fiscal deficit. Remarks by finance minister Palaniappan Chidambaram at a hastily called news conference yesterday that he would nearly halve the deficit in just over four years had [...]
Amplats makes miners offer to return to work October 29, 2012 MINER Anglo American Platinum yesterday offered an olive branch to striking miners, offering for them to return to work no later than 7am this morning to end a six week strike that has crippled production. The world’s largest platinum miner, which has been in discussions with the recognised South African unions, yesterday reached an agreement [...]
Premier Oil bondholders jump at offer for convertible swaps October 29, 2012 PREMIER Oil’s offer of a convertible bond swap has been met with strong demand from investors. Holders representing more than 98 per cent of $250m (£156m) worth of Premier Oil’s convertible bonds due in 2014 elected to swap into guaranteed convertible bonds due in 2018, the oil and gas company said yesterday. The new bonds, [...]
O2 Germany set to raise €1.5bn in year’s biggest European IPO October 29, 2012 EUROPE’s biggest initial public offering (IPO) this year, of the German branch of O2 owner Telefonica, is set to raise about €1.5bn (£1.2bn), the Spanish telecoms giant said yesterday. The Frankfurt-listed company, also called O2, is expected to begin trading today at €5.60 per share. The IPO is Germany’s biggest since 2007 when engine manufacturer [...]
NBC wins rights to broadcast UK Premier League football games for next two seasons October 29, 2012 NBC Universal has won the US broadcast rights to show Premier League games for the next two seasons beating current rights holders Fox, the football league said yesterday. The deal raises major questions over the future of Fox Soccer Channel, which has now lost rights to North America’s Major League Soccer, Italy’s Serie A and [...]