CITY VIEWS: HAS GORDON BROWN’S GOVERNMENT BEEN GOOD FOR THE CITY? September 24, 2009 DAVID BLANC VESTRA WEALTH“I don’t think so, because of three key issues: the 50 per cent income tax band, the rules on non-doms, and the government’s position on attacking the bonus culture. Boris Johnson has been far more understanding towards the City.” LAURA GRAY AVIVA INVESTORS“It hasn’t been good for the City, but no party [...]
M&C Saatchi profits suffer in the slump September 24, 2009 ADVERTISING group M&C Saatchi yesterday reported a 32 per cent drop in first-half profit, driven by the “unprecedented pressure” felt by its clients in the downturn. M&C – which was founded by Maurice and Charles Saatchi – said that client uncertainty over budgets had impacted both its revenue and profitability. However, it added that trading [...]
Sterling slips as King remarks on benefits of a weak pound… September 24, 2009 STERLING slumped against most foreign currencies yesterday, as forex traders took in Bank of England governor Mervyn King’s indication that he was comfortable with a weaker pound by selling it. Currency markets reacted to comments from King suggesting that a weaker sterling could help the UK recalibrate its economy, driving the pound to a five-month [...]
… while Bank economist admits the dangers of QE September 24, 2009 QUANTITATIVE EASING could result in unwanted asset bubbles that could prove “costly to rectify”, the Bank of England’s chief economist and monetary policy committee member Spencer Dale said yesterday. Speaking in Exeter, Dale said he was concerned by the uncertainty surrounding the effects of quantitative easing. “We do not have much experience of conducting monetary [...]
DOES M&C SAATCHI’S OUTLOOK OFFER ANY HOPE? September 24, 2009 FIONA ORFORD-WILLIAMS EDISON INVESTMENT RESEARCHMarketing spend is still heavily constrained, with continuing pressure on fees, but it does look like a base level is being reached and comparatives are becoming easier. The group is sensibly using its strong balance sheet to invest in new offices ahead of any market improvement. CLAIRE ENDERS ENDERS ANALYSISThe results [...]
JJB Sports plunges to a huge 43m loss September 24, 2009 EMBATTLED sportswear retailer JJB Sports yesterday reported widening losses for the six months to July, dragging the group £42.9m into the red. JJB Sports said that the losses had grown from £14.8m the year before, as revenue dived by 42.5 per cent to £178.6m. The group also said like-for-like sales were down by 27.4 per [...]
Artio raises $650m as Julius Baer unit floats in New York September 24, 2009 ARTIO Global Investors, the US asset management arm of Swiss private bank Julius Baer, listed on the New York Stock Exchange yesterday, gaining nearly seven per cent on its offering price. The asset manager’s stock opened at $27.30 per share, up from the initial public offering (IPO) price of $26 and rose to $27.74 during [...]
European executive wary of making changes to derivatives trading rules September 24, 2009 Forcing privately negotiated derivatives onto exchanges could contradict other EU laws that promote competition in trading and damage risk hedging, an official with the bloc’s executive body said yesterday. Turmoil from the demise of Lehman Brothers bank a year ago and the near-collapse of insurer AIG prompted global leaders to call for tougher rules to [...]
PRIVATE EQUITY MOGUL MOULTON CRASHES THE PARTY FOR ALCHEMY September 24, 2009 IT’S always good to spot a familiar face, right? Well, perhaps not for private equity firm Alchemy, which was co-sponsoring the Investor AllStars awards at the Park Lane Hilton on Wednesday evening. Bigwigs arrived at the hotel to the sight of former boss Jon Moulton happily schmoozing the crowd, just weeks after sensationally quitting the [...]
Good soft skills are key to turning grads into good employees September 23, 2009 IN India right now, a British training firm called Speak First is running a series of “finishing schools” to improve Indian graduates’ soft business skills and increase their chances of gaining employment. The schools address the fact that the academic and intellectual excellence of many Indian graduates is not matched by abilities in areas like [...]
