Ipsos confirms Synovate interest June 6, 2011 Exclusive by Steve Dinneen IPSOS has confirmed to City A.M. it is officially in talks to buy the £500m rated Synovate division of Aegis. Top executives, including co-President Didier Truchot, decided at a crunch meting in Paris yesterday to proceed with negotiations over the market research unit. Aegis yesterday confirmed to the market it has [...]
German banks held $23bn in Greek bonds last year June 6, 2011 German and French banks held over two-thirds of the Greek government bonds in international lenders’ hands at the end of last year, making them key to any restructuring deal. New bank lending data shows German banks held $22.bn (£13.8bn) of Greek government debt at the end of December, down by over $3bn in the fourth [...]
Exports drive UK factory orders and output June 6, 2011 Buoyant exports boosted British manufacturers in the second quarter, and firms expect demand to remain strong in coming months, a survey has found. The Engineering Employers’ Federation’s (EEF) quarterly Manufacturing Outlook also showed that firms had taken a hit on their profit margins as they had not been able to pass on soaring costs to [...]
Stocks suffer on global growth fears June 6, 2011 Stocks have fallen this morning on a hangover from weak US employment data on Friday, and falls in Asian markets overnight. US non-farm payroll data showing just 54,000 new jobs were created in May shocked the markets, leaving the Nasdaq 1.5 per cent lower. In Asia, the Nikkei fell to an 11-week closing low today [...]
UK car sales decline as private buyers stay away June 6, 2011 New car sales in the UK fell by 1.7 per cent in May compared with May 2010 as sales to fleets failed to offset a decline in purchases by individuals, new data shows. There were 150,431 new car registrations in May, the Society of Motor Manufacturers said. The decline was the smallest monthly fall since [...]
Russia’s Global Ports plans $750m London IPO June 6, 2011 Russian freight terminal operator Global Ports is planning to raise up to $750m (£456m) from an initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange. Global Ports, the latest in a stream of Russian companies seeking fresh capital from the market, has said it will sell $100m of new shares as well as an unspecified amount [...]
Tepco shares plunge on nationalisation fears June 6, 2011 Shares in nuclear crisis-hit Tokyo Electric Power Co fell 25 per cent last night after the head of the Tokyo Stock Exchange suggested it might be delisted and restructured. Atsushi Saito, the exchange’s chief executive, said the utility, which owns the Fukishima Daiichi nuclear power plant, should be nationalised temporarily to recover from the losses [...]
Prada’s high-priced HK IPO to raise $2.6bn June 6, 2011 Italian fashion house Prada could raise up to $2.6bn (£1.6bn) in an initial public offering in Hong Kong, setting a valuation for the company significantly higher than its European peers. Prada set an indicative price range of HK$36.5 to HK$48 a share for the IPO as it started meetings with Asian investors to gauge appetite [...]
Airline industry’s profit forecast halved June 6, 2011 Global airlines have more than halved their forecast for 2011 industry profits on the back of high oil prices and turmoil in Japan, North Africa and the Middle East. Industry body the International Air Transport Association, whose airlines claim to carry 93 per cent of global passenger traffic, said on Monday it expected industry profits [...]
IS THE UK REALLY OPEN FOR BUSINESS, MR CAMERON? IF SO… DON’T LIST BROADGATE June 5, 2011 CITY A.M. today launches a campaign against proposals to give listed building status to the Square Mile’s Broadgate estate, and calls on the government to prove the UK is open for business by rejecting the plans. If the government decides to list the 1980s site then plans to redevelop it into a new headquarters for investment [...]