French: Tobin tax to be in place by end of this year January 4, 2012 A TOBIN tax will be in place by the end of the year regardless of staunch UK opposition, the French minister for Europe has declared. Jean Leonetti said it is “on the programme” for the next EU summit at the end of January and “will be put in place before the end of 2012”, raising [...]
UniCredit is suspended January 4, 2012 UNICREDIT shares had to be suspended yesterday as it revealed it has been forced to heavily discount its rights issues after current shareholders said they would sign up to buy just 14 per cent of the new equity. The bank’s stock plunged over ten per cent in less than half an hour yesterday, with its [...]
Apple could take aim for Premier League football January 4, 2012 APPLE could launch an audacious bid for Premier League football rights, according to industry sources. The Cupertino-based firm is said to be examining whether a bid for the rights could be a driving force for its long-rumoured Apple TV, which is expected in the first half of this year. The next three seasons of the [...]
Domino’s sales growth fuelled by a rise in online ordering habits January 4, 2012 BRITAIN’S biggest pizza delivery firm Domino’s Pizza said its sales growth had accelerated in the fourth quarter and its 2011 profits would be in line with market expectations. Domino’s, which operates the British and Irish franchises of the global delivery brand, said sales at its 604 shops open more than a year were up 3.6 [...]
Microsoft suing Comet over sold counterfeit CDs January 4, 2012 MICROSOFT yesterday launched legal proceedings against electrics retailer Comet, claiming that the group has created and sold more than 94,000 counterfeit Microsoft recovery CDs. The discs were sold to customers who bought computers loaded with Windows Vista or XP operating systems. Comet denies any breach of copyright.
Retailers tumble as Next warns of anaemic growth January 4, 2012 CLOTHING retailer Next admitted to “disappointing” sales at its high street stores and warned yesterday that growth this year would be modest, citing concerns over the Eurozone debt crisis and rising unemployment. Its shares fell by four per cent yesterday after chief executive Lord Simon Wolfson said it was on track to meet profit forecasts for [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: DO NEXT’S RESULTS SPELL MORE GLOOM FOR THE SECTOR? January 4, 2012 JOHN STEVENSON | PEEL HUNT Next has delivered second half trading in keeping with sales and profit before tax forecasts overall, albeit store sales were slightly disappointing given the weak snow comparative. As a likely outperformer, Next’s statement does not set a positive tone for competitor updates. MATTHEW MCEACHRAN | SINGER CAPITAL MARKETS Although margin [...]
Festive cheer at John Lewis as sales jump January 4, 2012 HIGH street bellwether retailer John Lewis has hailed “outstanding” sales in the run-up to Christmas but warned of a challenging year ahead as economic conditions remain volatile. Total sales in the five weeks to 31 December surged to almost £596m, up 9.3 per cent compared with last year, while like-for-like sales were up 6.2 per [...]
Flood of ECB cash stagnates as bank deposits hit new high January 4, 2012 DEPOSITS at the European Central Bank (ECB) hit another record high yesterday, indicating that much of the new liquidity created by the central bank is still stuck in its own coffers rather than boosting the real economy. Funds in the ECB’s deposit facility edged up €69m to hit €453bn yesterday, suggesting that banks are not [...]
Weak demand for Berlin’s debt at record low yield January 4, 2012 GERMANY saw muted demand at an auction of its ten-year debt yesterday after Berlin refused to accept offers that were not at record low yields. But the UK had little trouble offloading £3.75bn’s worth of five-year debt. The sale, which saw Britain pay an average yield of 1.75 per cent, was two times over-subscribed. By [...]