WHISKY AT MIDDAY FOR ABERDEEN’S POLAR FEAT June 2, 2011 THE WHISKY came out at noon at Aberdeen Asset Management yesterday to christen the boat the fund managers are sponsoring on its voyage into the Arctic unknown. The Old Pulteney has been designed to withstand some of the harshest conditions on earth, and her six-man crew – led by Scottish explorer Jock Wishart – will [...]
Beware weight of expectation June 2, 2011 BEWARE the weight of great expectations. It is hard to quibble with the performance of Asos, which grew annual profits by 41 per cent in the year to 31 March; few other consumer-facing businesses can match that in these tough times. Strategically, the firm is making great strides. It has grown the number of its [...]
Resurgent Rafa to storm in to French final June 2, 2011 FOR two players who both concede they are not at the top of their game, reaching the semi-final of the French Open is quite an achievement. Top seed Rafael Nadal will take on Andy Murray, seeded fourth, at Roland Garros today for a place in Sunday’s final and, despite his protestations that he is not [...]
Sentance attacks Bank May 31, 2011 OUTGOING Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) member Andrew Sentance used his last day in office to launch a stinging attack on the Bank of England. Sentance, whose five-year term ended yesterday, said the Bank of England was in danger of losing its credibility. “I think that there is a big risk now emerging to credibility of [...]
SIP and Betfred in final Tote race May 31, 2011 THE winning bid for the Tote is set to be announced tomorrow – with frontrunners Sports Investment Partners (SIP) and bookmaker Betfred neck and neck at the finish. A Sky News report yesterday suggested SIP chief Sir Martin Broughton had increased the value of his offer to the Treasury by £2m and the overall value [...]
BARCLAYS MAKES HAY AS THE PLOT THICKENS May 30, 2011 THE PLOT thickens at the Hay Festival, with news that Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall will be making an appearance today at the famous literary event. But Camilla isn’t the only surprise addition to the programme at the Hay-on-Wye books festival. Next Saturday, Wikileaks founder Julian Assange will make a rare public appearance when he gives [...]
Ulusaba: Where to experience the ultimate safari Where Branson goes to discover the Big Five May 30, 2011 SO much for telling stories around a campfire while on safari. For my merry gang, the tales of adventure started in the transfer lounge at Johannesburg as we waited to board a 12-seater plane bound for Ulusaba, Richard Branson’s lodge just north of Kruger. The chitchat went something like this: “Did you hear about the [...]
ALL CHANGE AT LLOYD’S AS IT RINGS 25 YEARS May 26, 2011 IT MAY seem like only yesterday for many City veterans, but today marks 25 years since the first managing agents moved into the landmark Lloyd’s building on Lime Street. So happy anniversary to the insurance giant, which still shows traces of more than 300 years of Lloyd’s history, such as the famous Lutine Bell, which [...]
Epsom’s French fancy May 26, 2011 WITH just over a week to go until the Investec Derby, racing’s good, bad and ugly gathered on Epsom Downs yesterday morning for the racecourse’s annual ‘Breakfast with the Stars’. The event offers up the opportunity for any horse entered in the world’s most famous race to exercise on the track and sample its undulations, [...]
Zynga eyes market float May 25, 2011 SOCIAL games designer Zynga could file for a multi-billion dollar IPO as soon as next month. It is understood the firm is eager to cash in on the vociferous investor appetite for technology stocks following the bumper flotation of LinkedIn last week. The professional social network saw its shares surge 171 per cent during its [...]