Service sector profitability up January 4, 2012 Firms in the services sector were more profitable in the third quarter of 2011 than at any time since late 2008, according to figures out yesterday from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). However, manufacturing firms’ profitability fell to its lowest since records began in 1997. The rate of return for non-financial services firms hit [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS January 4, 2012 National Savings & Investments The commercial secretary to the Treasury, Lord Sassoon, has appointed James Furse (pictured) as non-executive director on the board of National Savings & Investments. Furse joined the NS&I board on 1 January and replaces Sir John de Trafford MBE, who became NS&I’s chairman on the same date. Furse joins NS&I after [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS January 4, 2012 AFREN JP Morgan Cazenove rates the oil and gas company as “overweight” with a target price of 98p after it announced earlier in the week it had achieved an exit rate production level of 55,400 barrels a day, ahead of target. The broker says even at lower production levels Afren is still in a reasonably [...]
Yahoo names PayPal’s Thompson as new chief January 4, 2012 Yahoo named PayPal President Scott Thompson as its chief executive, taking over on 9 January from interim CEO Tim Morse, who will resume his role as chief financial officer. Thompson’s appointment comes five months after the firing of former CEO Carol Bartz as former Web powerhouse Yahoo struggles to compete with newer heavyweights Google and [...]
Lawrence murderers given life sentences January 4, 2012 Two men who took part in the murder of black teenager Stephen Lawrence in 1993 – a landmark case which exposed what an inquiry called the “institutional racism” of London’s police force – were given life sentences today. Judge Colman Treacy ruled that Gary Dobson should serve a minimum 15 years and two months and [...]
John Lewis toasts “outstanding” Christmas sales January 4, 2012 High Street bellwether retailer John Lewis has said its sales throughout the Christmas period were “outstanding” at almost £600m. Sales rose 9.3 per cent to £596m in the five weeks to the end of December, compared with the same period in 2010, the owner of Peter Jones and Waitrose said. Like for like sales were [...]
German bond sale sees demand fall short January 4, 2012 Germany has sold €4.06bn (£3.39bn) of 10-year government bonds in its first auction of the year but demand fell short of the full €5bn on offer. Demand was notably better than at the launch of the January 2022 bond in November when fewer bids were worth less than the €6bn on offer, resulting in almost [...]
Construction picks up in December January 4, 2012 Growth in the construction sector unexpectedly gained pace in December, a survey of purchasing managers showed on Wednesday, providing a rare glimmer of hope that the economy can still avoid recession. The Markit/CIPS construction PMI rose to 53.2 from 52.3 in November, confounding economists’ expectations for a fall to 51.7. “The survey suggests that the [...]
Romney wins in Iowa January 4, 2012 Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney squeaked out a victory in Iowa’s first-in-the-nation nominating contest on Tuesday as little-known rival Rick Santorum rode lingering conservative unease to a surprise second-place finish. Romney edged out Santorum by only eight votes, winning by 30,015 to 30,007, the state Republican Party announced. As the Republicans headed for their next [...]
Next Christmas shop sales disappoint but online thrives January 4, 2012 Next has reported a 3.1 per cent rise in total sales between August and Christmas Eve as online sales offset “disappointing” sales at its High Street stores. The company, which did not discount any goods in the run up to Christmas, expects full-year pretax profits to be £7m either side of £565m – up four [...]