Unilever likely to face fine for fixing wash powder price April 12, 2011 CONSUMER goods giant Unilever, which makes Persil, is expected to be fined today by competition watchdogs for fixing prices in the washing powder market. The Anglo-Dutch firm, together with Ariel maker Procter & Gamble, is understood to have struck a deal with the European Commission that will see it receive a reduced penalty in exchange [...]
Unilever washes hands of Sanex March 23, 2011 Unilever has sold its shower gel and deodorant business Sanex to US consumer goods group Colgate-Palmolive for €672m (£584m), the firm said. The sale is part of Unilever’s deal with the EU to sell the brand for anti-trust reasons.
WPP buys Vietnamese agency March 22, 2011 WPP yesterday announced the acquisition of Vietnamese digital agency Who Digital. The world’s biggest advertising agency plans to form a joint venture in the country with OgilvyOne, in which it will take a majority stake. Who Digital, which has assets of around £400,000, has clients including Unilever, Megastar, HSBC, Baoviet and Sony Ericsson. The acquisition [...]
Intertek buys energy expert Moody for $730m March 7, 2011 Safety testing company Intertek is buying quality and safety services firm Moody International for $730m (£450m) in cash to add energy sector expertise. Intertek, which also reported forecast-beating full-year profits up 11 per cent, said the acquisition would drive expansion in two key areas, industry services and system certification. Intertek, which tests a range of [...]
Rich rewards for Coffee Nation team after sale March 2, 2011 COFFEE Nation’s chief executive Scott Martin and his team will be sharing an estimated £11.9m pot after Whitbread yesterday announced that it had paid £59.5m in cash for the company. The management team bought the self service coffee company in 2008 with private equity backing from Investec and Milestone Capital. Other Coffee Nation executives in [...]
Don’t blindly follow the herds into the big cap funds March 2, 2011 DESPITE large-cap funds having underperformed against their small to mid-cap alternatives in recent years (see chart), figures would suggest that this year could see large-cap funds turn the tables. “We have certainly seen a lot more interest in equities, away from bonds and gilts,” said Andy Simpson at Schroders Asset Management, “though not as attractive [...]
What the other papers say this morning March 1, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES TOP 10 HEDGE FUNDS MAKE $28BN The top 10 hedge funds made $28bn for clients in the second half of last year, $2bn more than the net profits of Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, Barclays and HSBC combined, according to new data. Even the biggest of the hedge funds have only a [...]
The knock-on cost of pricey commodities February 27, 2011 Inflation is the word on everyone’s lips at the moment. RPI inflation – the measure that best reflects the true rise in the cost of living in the UK – is now at 5.1 per cent a year as producers raise prices to protect their profits. But even the biggest brand owners are struggling to [...]
Legal eagle: how London’s top law firm retained its grip on the City February 20, 2011 The head of law firm Slaughter and May is two minutes late for his interview with City A.M., for which he immediately apologies. The first thing is surprising; the second is not. The partners in this blueblooded City institution have spent a lifetime doing things correctly. Even among other Magic Circle outfits, this firm manages [...]
Reckitt slides after profit misses target February 9, 2011 RECKITT Benckiser shares took a hit yesterday after the company’s fourth-quarter profit rose but fell short of forecasts. Shares in the maker of Dettol and Cillit Bang closed 5.1 per cent lower at 3,270p after it said net revenue rose ten per cent to £2.28bn, and like-for-like sales climbed five per cent. Pre-tax profit fell [...]