Harvey Nash profits halved September 30, 2009 RECRUITMENT and outsourcing firm Harvey Nash yesterday said its first-half pre-tax profits had fallen by more than 50 per cent as the economic downturn saw clients slash their demand for staff. Profits before tax fell to £1.8m, from £3.9m a year earlier, on flat revenues of £200m. The group said its UK revenue fell by [...]
Ernst &Young revenues rise despite crisis September 30, 2009 ERNST & YOUNG (E&Y), one of the Big Four accountancy firms, said it left its rivals in the dust in the 2008-9 year in terms of UK revenue growth. The smallest of the Big Four said UK revenues rose to £1.38bn – a 7.9 per cent gain on the £1.28bn revenues seen in the previous [...]
OFT levies 39.3m fine on recruiters September 30, 2009 SIX recruitment agencies have been fined for price fixing and forming a cartel, with the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) slapping a penalty on market leader Hays equal to half its estimated 2009-10 net profit. The OFT imposed fines totalling £39.3m yesterday for breaching competition law. A week ago, the OFT handed out fines totalling [...]
Commerzbank stalls over unpaid bonuses lawsuit September 30, 2009 COMMERZBANK will not be able to delay indefinitely a lawsuit by former employees seeking bonuses they claim were guaranteed but withheld, a lawyer acting for the staff said. The bank yesterday said it had won a 28-day extension to prepare a defence against 72 employees of Dresdner Kleinwort, now part of the German bank, who [...]
UBS upbeat as Swiss regulator warns of curbs September 30, 2009 SWITZERLAND’S two global banks UBS and Credit Suisse may face tighter regulation than other domestic and international competitors, the country’s banking regulator FINMA said yesterday. But the bank hit back, as chief financial officer John Cryan said underlying performance was getting better. “I’m more bullish on UBS than I have been for a couple of [...]
Aer Lingus gets set for winter September 30, 2009 Aer Lingus caused a ruckus in the City yesterday, as the budget airline collared workers around London Bridge to take part in a snowball fight stunt. Unsuspecting City workers were pulled away from their lunch break to play in the fake snow, in a bid to advertise the airline’s winter flights. City staff were given [...]
IndigoVision profits rocket up September 30, 2009 IndigoVision, the Edinburgh-based video security firm announced a 30 per cent increase in its pre-tax profits for the full year of £3.3m. The company, which develops and makes internet-based video security systems used in airports, casinos and border crossings worldwide, is recommending a dividend of 5p per share. IndigoVision has staff in 22 countries, with [...]
Microsoft wins $400m appeal September 30, 2009 Microsoft, the US software business, has been cleared of a patent infringement that would have seen it pay out $388m (£242m) in damages if upheld. A federal judge overturned an earlier ruling which said that the software company had infringed a patent held by anti-piracy software company Uniloc, freeing it from paying what would have [...]
Kroenke one step closer to Arsenal goal September 30, 2009 US SPORTS tycoon Stan Kroenke yesterday inched closer to his dream of taking over Arsenal Football Club, after its board confirmed that he had upped his stake to 28.7 per cent. The owner of the Denver Nuggets basketball team bought a further 80 shares in the Premiership club for £680,000, nudging him closer to the [...]
Smiths is cautious on forecast September 30, 2009 SMITHS, the technology company which makes airport X-ray scanners and mechanical seals on medical equipment, yesterday said its underlying annual profit fell 21 per cent but beat forecasts. The group said its outlook for the rest of the year was cautious. “Although statisticians are pointing towards a number of signs suggesting economies are beginning to [...]