South African government abandons plan for more nuclear power South Africa has ditched plans to expand its nuclear power capacity, in favour of diversifying towards natural gas, wind and other energy sources. Under the leadership of former President Jacob Zuma, the government had put forward a proposal to increase the amount of energy generated by nuclear power by six fold. If given the go ahead, [...]
Melrose subsidiary sale on hold after CEO falls ill Plans by Melrose Industries to divest itself of an American subsidiary to help plug a £1bn pension deficit has been put on hold. The sale of Ergotron, a maker of equipment for schools and hospitals, was expected to raise around $800m (£620m). However, the disposal has now been delayed due to retirement of Ergotron’s chief [...]
Report highlights huge divide between public sector and private sector pensions PUBLIC sector pensions are three times more generous than their private sector counterparts, despite being paid for through general taxation, a new study has revealed. According to the Tax Payers’ Alliance, a 25-year-old employee entering the public sector on the national average wage of £28,600 per annum, would enjoy a far larger a pension pot [...]
Maduro’s revenge: President lashes out following drone attack August 5, 2018 Opposition leaders in Venezuela are fearing a backlash after the country’s socialist President appeared to come under attack from drones carrying explosives. Venezuela’s government claimed today that six activists were arrested following explosions at a military event at which Nicolas Maduro was giving a speech. Maduro, the hard-left successor of Hugo Chavez, said the explosions [...]
Aviva sees new business rise by £690m after major restructuring October 30, 2014 Restructuring at insurer Aviva is paying off as reforms pushed through by chief executive Mark Wilson delivered a 15 per cent increase in new business in the year to date, worth £690m. Especially strong performances in Europe and Asia, which saw rises of 40 per cent and 47 per cent respectively, boosted the growth. Wilson, [...]
National Express share price accelerates after passenger rise October 30, 2014 Increasing passenger numbers and lower debt have fuelled a 15 per cent rise in third-quarter pre-tax profits at National Express compared with the same period last year, figures revealed yesterday. The transport group saw growth in both passenger numbers and revenue in every division this year, including its Spanish operation, Alsa, marking a turnaround from [...]
Lufthansa slashes profit forecast over increase in competition October 30, 2014 GERMAN airline Lufthansa yesterday slashed its profit outlook for 2015 as increased competition and a fall in global growth forecasts took its toll. Europe’s largest airline by revenue reported higher than expected third-quarter results, but said it expected its 2015 operating profit to be only “significantly above” the €1bn (£788m) for 2014, compared with a [...]
Riverstone Energy share price rises as firm reveals $13m profit in third quarter one year after IPO October 29, 2014 Shares in Riverstone Energy rose by 1.5 per cent yesterday after its third quarter results revealed a $13.4m (£8.3m) profit. Riverstone stated that it had assessed numerous potential exploration, production and midstream investments since last October, with nine made so far. Pierre Lapeyre, co-founder of Riverstone, commented: “While all nine investments are still in their [...]
Antofagasta targets unchanged by poor quarterly production October 29, 2014 Mining firm Antofagasta maintained yesterday that it is on track to meet its 2014 production target despite production tumbling across the board in the first nine months of year. Gold production saw the biggest decrease at 64,700 ounces, a decline of 18.3 per cent compared with the same period in 2013. The company attributed this [...]
