Chinese in £1bn talks to gobble up Weetabix April 22, 2012 THE OWNER of Weetabix, one of Britain’s biggest breakfast cereal producers, is in talks with a Chinese company about a possible sale of the business. Bright Foods, Shanghai’s government-owned food-maker, is in discussions with Weetabix-owner Lion Capital about a bid believed to be in the region of £1bn. Such a price-tag would be a 70 [...]
Vodafone is facing decision time over its attempt to bid for CWW April 22, 2012 VODAFONE is set to unveil its intentions regarding Cable & Wireless Worldwide this morning, just days after rival bidder Tata Communications walked away from the table. The telecoms giant has until noon to put up or shut up after having its deadline extended three times already. Vodafone first expressed an interest in mid-February. Since then, [...]
Treasury tells departments: cut 5pc to save for a rainy day fund April 22, 2012 DEPARTMENTS will have to start saving their own reserve fund equal to five per cent of their spending, the Treasury will say today, forcing them to identify around £16bn in extra cuts to their day-to-day spending. Chief secretary Danny Alexander will tell the Institute for Fiscal Studies today that it is time for “new and [...]
Ex-HBOS boss in battle with FSA over fine April 22, 2012 PETER Cummings, the man behind some of the most high profile loans made by Halifax Bank of Scotland (HBOS), has been handed a seven-figure fine by the City regulator. The former corporate boss is believed to have been handed a “warning notice” by the Financial Services Authority, which has been investigating the bank’s buying spree [...]
FPC is set to hit lending, warns HSBC chairman April 22, 2012 HSBC chairman Douglas Flint has joined the chorus of criticism against the Bank of England’s new financial policy committee (FPC) and warned it could reduce the pool of capital, increase lending costs and hit borrowing. Flint used a major speech to warn of the “material impact” the committee could have on access to credit and [...]
Boris calls for tougher controls on migrants coming to Britain April 22, 2012 BORIS Johnson has called on the government to “get a grip” on immigration, in an apparent move away from his previous pro-migration stance. Johnson said yesterday ministers should “blooming well sort the problem out” and put in place tougher immigration controls. “It is really important for the country. It cannot be beyond the wit of [...]
Murdoch slams government as Leveson looms April 22, 2012 RUPERT Murdoch unleashed an avalanche of criticism at the coalition government as he landed in London this weekend. The media mogul, who arrived in the UK on Saturday ahead of his appearance this week at the Leveson Inquiry, took to Twitter to slam George Osborne’s £10bn pledge to the IMF and the “pasty tax” unveiled [...]
Ex Icelandic PM to learn fate as first politician tried over crisis April 22, 2012 ICELAND’S former prime minister Geir Haarde, the only politician in the world to stand trial for their role in the 2008 financial crisis, will today learn whether or not he is guilty of gross negligence. In a verdict that many fear will do little to heal the wounds of the meltdown, a court will decide [...]
OLYMPIC MEDIA BUZZ LONDON 2012 PARTNERS April 22, 2012 IN ASSOCIATION with Repskan.com, City A.M. is measuring the relative Olympic media buzz around the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games partners, week by week. The leaderboard, right, reflects their ranking over the past week, in this case from Wednesday 11 April to Wednesday 18 April. P&G has not featured in the top ten ranking [...]
UK firms show healthy profits April 22, 2012 BRITAIN’S firms benefited from growing economic confidence and a spell of stability in the Eurozone, issuing an unusually low number of profit warnings last month, Ernst and Young analysis showed yesterday. Dividend payments rose in the first quarter of the year, according to a Capita study out today, and Bibby Financial Services data showed business [...]