Murdoch announces launch of The Sun on Sunday February 17, 2012 Rupert Murdoch has announced his intention to launch a Sunday edition of The Sun newspaper “very soon”. The new publication has been rumoured ever since the News of the World was forced to close in July 2011 and it is believed that several mock-ups of ‘The Sun on Sunday’ have already been produced, suggesting its [...]
German President resigns over home loan scandal February 17, 2012 GERMAN President Christian Wulff resigned this morning after state prosecutors asked parliament to remove his legal immunity over accusations that he accepted favours. He has been hit by a scandal over a home loan that he accepted while leading the state of Lower Saxony. “The developments of the past few days and weeks have shown [...]
FTSE buoyed by Greek endgame February 17, 2012 The FTSE 100 opened on the front foot as the end game at last appeared to be approaching in the Greek bailout debacle. Optimism is growing that Greece has finally done enough to secure a second bailout, which could be approved as early as Monday. Averting a disorderly Greek insolvency is seen as a crucial [...]
UK retail sales in surprise 0.9pc jump February 17, 2012 UK retail sales rose 0.9 per cent in January compared with the precious month, official figures showed. The surprise lift followed a 0.6 per cent rise in December, according to the figures from the Office for National Statistics. Sales rose at thir fastest pace since April 2011, as consumers splashed out on furniture and sports [...]
John Lewis sales up despite snow February 17, 2012 Britain’s biggest department store chain John Lewis said sales rose last week as heavy snow prompted its shoppers to switch to the firm’s internet offer. The employee-owned retailer said on Friday its sales rose 4.1 percent to 52.3 million pounds in the week to February 11. “The start of the week saw the cold wind [...]
Anglo American profits rise February 17, 2012 Global miner Anglo American posted a 14 per cent rise in full-year operating profit, broadly in line with market expectations, as bumper iron ore profits and record income from coal helped offset a drop in copper revenues. The miner said 2011 operating profit totalled $11.1bn, just shy of a market forecast of $11.2 billion, according [...]
Virgin complains to regulator over IAG deal February 17, 2012 Virgin Atlantic has made a formal complaint to the European Commission about IAG’s purchase of Lufthansa’s British unit bmi, saying competition on some European routes would diminish and that fares would increase. Late last year, British Airways (BA) owner IAG agreed to buy bmi for £172.5m, seeing off rival bidder Virgin in the race to [...]
Banks face new threat of break up February 16, 2012 BRITISH retail banks must act fast to encourage competition or face the threat of being broken up, a leading regulator has warned. John Fingleton, head of the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), yesterday said he would contemplate asking for a Competition Commission investigation into the sector unless there was a “step change” in the way [...]
Former banking star takes John Lewis job February 16, 2012 HELEN WEIR, the former head of retail banking at Lloyds Banking Group, has been appointed by John Lewis as group finance director, making a return to the sector eight years after leaving the same post with the DIY retailer Kingfisher. John Lewis said Weir will formally join the company in April, replacing Marisa Cassoni at [...]
Greeks: we’re nearly there February 16, 2012 HOPES rose last night that a bailout deal for Greece could finally be on the verge of completion, despite ongoing bickering between politicians from the ailing Mediterranean state and its main lenders. “We are almost there,” one Eurozone official said yesterday, signalling that euro finance ministers could sign an agreement at their meeting scheduled for [...]