BEST of the BROKERS July 1, 2012 BMW UBS has upgraded the car firm from “neutral” to “buy” with an unchanged 12-month target price of €75. The broker has trimmed its earnings per share forecast for the year by five per cent, due to weakening markets. However, it thinks the firm is protected from some of the slump thanks to its exposure [...]
Eurozone action helps stem bank losses June 29, 2012 The FTSE 100 rose this morning as a string of measures aimed at patching up the Eurozone injected more confidence into markets. Leaders of the bloc agreed to take emergency action to bring down Italy and Spain’s surging borrowing costs, create a single supervisory body for eurozone banks, and enable the bloc’s ESM bailout fund [...]
EU deal to help banks June 29, 2012 Eurozone leaders agreed to bend their aid rules to shore up banks and bring down the borrowing costs of stricken members like Italy and Spain, in a sign the bloc is adopting a more flexible approach to solving its two-year old debt crisis. The measures, agreed after 14 hours of intense talks that pitted Rome [...]
Nike profits dip June 29, 2012 Nike reported an eight per cent fall in fourth-quarter profits to $549m (£354m), despite them expecting a lift from the Olympics. The company battled with a cost increase for labour and material and offset this by raising their product prices. Their fourth quarter revenues rose 12 per cent to $6.5bn, which was below expectations. Overall [...]
Credit Suisse makes profit in second quarter June 29, 2012 Credit Suisse made a profit in the second quarter, including at its under-fire investment bank, it said on Friday, in an unscheduled statement that underscores the pressure it is feeling to restore confidence in its battered shares. Credit Suisse shares have slumped to 20-year lows this week following a rebuke from the Swiss National Bank [...]
Melrose agrees $2.3bn Elster acquisition June 29, 2012 British buyout group Melrose announced on Friday an agreed deal to buy German utility-meter maker Elster Group for £1.4bn ($2.3bn) in its first major deal for four years. Melrose, which buys underperforming manufacturing businesses and turns them around before selling them, said it would pay $20.50 for each Elster American depositary share, at a 43 [...]
AB InBev in $20bn deal for Modelo June 29, 2012 Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world’s biggest brewer, said it would swallow the half of Grupo Modelo it does not already own for $20.1bn in the latest of a string of deals by big brewers looking for growth in emerging markets. The owner of Budweiser and Stella Artois beers said on Friday it had reached agreement with [...]
BANK SHARES PLUNGE AS SCANDALS SPREAD June 28, 2012 AROUND £3.7bn was wiped off the value of Barclays’ shares yesterday as anti-fraud investigators looked into the interest rates scandal and George Osborne said the bank’s executives should “pay the price”. Barclays’ shares fell up to 18 per cent as chief executive Bob Diamond and chairman Marcus Agius were left clinging on to their jobs. [...]
Obamacare given green light by Supreme Court June 28, 2012 THE FUTURE of American healthcare will be a key battleground in the run up to this year’s presidential election, after the US Supreme Court waved through the controversial Affordable Care Act yesterday. Republicans had hoped the court would deem part of the bill, which is dubbed Obamacare, to be unconstitutional – a decision that would [...]
Herbert Smith merger to form top 10 law firm June 28, 2012 CITY law firm Herbert Smith announced yesterday that it is to merge with Australia’s Freehills, in a tie-up that will create one of the world’s top 10 law firms by headcount. Herbies, which employs more than 700 lawyers in its London offices, will combine with the Australian firm to create a business with historic joint [...]