Sky Deutschland rises on subs growth January 12, 2011 LOSS-MAKING pay-TV broadcaster Sky Deutschland reported a big jump in subscriber growth in Germany, sending its shares to a one-year high. The company, in which News Corporation owns a 49.9 per cent stake, has suffered from sluggish growth because of Germans’ reluctance to pay for premium TV content. During the last three months of 2010, [...]
AIG agrees $2.16bn sale of Nan Shan January 12, 2011 AMERICAN International Group (AIG) has accepted a $2.16bn (£1.38bn) cash offer for its Taiwan Nan Shan Life unit from a group led by local conglomerate Ruentex, marking the beginning of the end of a drawn-out political process. AIG has been trying to sell the unit for 15 months as part of its plans to pay [...]
Corporate sales boost Sodexo January 12, 2011 FRENCH caterer Sodexo kept its 2011 goals for higher sales and profits, despite North American unemployment, a struggling public sector in Europe, and rising food prices that make the economic climate challenging. The world’s second-biggest catering services company after Britain’s Compass Group posted a 10.5 per cent rise in fiscal first-quarter sales yesterday. Sodexo benefitted [...]
Cliffs pays £2.64bn for Consolidated Thompson January 12, 2011 CLIFFS Natural Resources has agreed to buy Canada’s Consolidated Thompson Iron Mines for C$4.07bn (£2.64bn), aiming to expand its capacity to feed Asia’s appetite for iron ore. The Cleveland, Ohio-based iron ore and coal miner said it wants to be able to cater to booming markets like China and India that are undergoing rapid urbanisation. [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS January 12, 2011 SocialGO SocialGO, the AIM-listed developer and provider of software for social network building, has appointed Alex Halliday as its new chief executive. At 25 years old, Halliday is the youngest chief executive of an AIM company. The company has also made Dominic Wheatley executive chairman of its board, and Ian Livingstone has taken on a [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS January 12, 2011 BRITISH AIRWAYS Citi rates the airline a “buy” with a target price of £3.75, but marks it high risk ahead of the launch of its new post-merger holding company, International Consolidated Airlines Group, on 24 January. The broker says BA’s risks look manageable, while cost synergies and growing demand for first class travel will benefit [...]
Good news boosts FTSE to 2008 levels January 12, 2011 BANKS and miners dominated the FTSE today, leading the index to another 31-month high as good news from Portugal’s bond sale boosted financial stocks, and miners tracked metals prices higher. Four FTSE 250 companies also posted double-digit gains as news that Gartmore agreed a £335.3m takeover deal by rival Henderson sent their shares higher. The [...]
Markets “breathe easier” after Portugal bond issue January 12, 2011 DEBT-ridden Portugal has passed a key market test by selling its benchmark ten-year bond at a lower yield than in the previous auction, backed by strong demand. The sale has been branded a success and lifts some pressure off the country to seek a bailout from the EU and IMF. Portuguese finance minister Fernando Teixeira [...]
UK to review North Sea drilling after Gulf spill January 12, 2011 The government has said it will review its regulations covering offshore oil and gas drilling in the North Sea following the publication of a US investigation into BP’s Gulf of Mexico oil spill. The review will start within a month and will report later this year, Energy Minister Charles Hendry said in a statement. “We [...]
German 2010 growth fastest since reunification January 12, 2011 Germany’s economy rebounded last year at its fastest rate since reunification, official figures have shown. GDP has bounced back at a rate of 3.6 per cent this year after slumping to its deepest post-war trough last year, preliminary Federal Statistics Office data showed. In 2009, German GDP shrank by 4.7 per cent, the biggest recorded [...]