World Cup chance everything to me, says grateful Upson June 8, 2009 ENGLAND and West Ham defender Matthew Upson is set to get another chance to impress against Andorra tonight – but admits his mind is already wandering to next summer’s World Cup finals. Upson had to wait later than most for his career to blossom, with injuries and competition for places curtailing his progress at Arsenal. [...]
Banks shrug off McDonald’s and Apple worries June 8, 2009 US stocks rebounded late yesterday to end flat, shrugging off lighter-than-expected sales from McDonald’s and lowered iPhone prices from Apple. The three major US stock indexes had fallen more than 1 per cent before rallying in the last hour of trading, led by bank shares. Analysts pointed to the S&P 500’s recent piercing of its [...]
Kaka completes record 56m Real Madrid switch June 8, 2009 BRAZILIAN playmaker Kaka last night became the world’s most expensive footballer after completing his record transfer from AC Milan to Real Madrid, believed to be worth in the region of £56m. The Spanish giants revealed the completion of the transfer on their website last night just hours after the 27-year-old superstar underwent a medical while [...]
SUMMER SALES June 8, 2009 Baggies seek £2m for Mowbray WEST BROM are standing firm on a £2m compensation fee for manager Tony Mowbray to fend off interest from Celtic. The Baggies confirmed the SPL giants had made an official approach for Mowbray to replace Gordon Strachan but chairman Jeremy Peace is holding out for £2m. “Most people would regard [...]
SPOTLIGHT ON SMALL CAPS June 8, 2009 VIDEO telecommunications firm Scotty Group revealed a mixed bag of news yesterday as its shares fell 13.9 per cent to 59p on Aim. Scotty updated the market on contract timing delays but was upbeat on the signing of a new? 8m (£6.9m) contract with Eurocopter. The small cap resources sector was as active as ever. [...]
BP’s head of green fuels to step down June 8, 2009 THE CHIEF of BP’s alternative energy division, Vivienne Cox, is to retire at the end of the month as the oil giant scales back its financial commitment to green fuels. Cox, BP’s most senior female executive, will be replaced by the chief operating officer of the division, Karina Landis. The company has faced criticism over [...]
Labour routed at the ballot box as centre-right gains traction in EU June 8, 2009 LABOUR suffered its worst performance in a national election since World War II, as it was left trailing in third place by the Conservatives and the UK Independence Party (UKIP) in this week’s European elections. Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s party polled just 15.7 per cent of the vote, undershooting Labour’s worst expectations, as David Cameron’s [...]
Lloyds stalls on dividend June 8, 2009 LLOYDS Banking Group will not resume dividend payments to shareholders this year, despite freeing itself of £480m a year in interest payments by redeeming £4bn in government-held preference shares. The bank confirmed yesterday that it had sold 87 per cent of a £4bn share placing to existing shareholders at 38.43p, with a 13 per cent [...]
Shell chief hits out over pay June 8, 2009 JEROEN van de Veer, the outgoing chief executive of Royal Dutch Shell, has called for a reform of the firm’s executive pay structure. Van de Veer, who was himself the subject of a shareholder mutiny over a €1.35m (£1.16m) bonus he received despite failing to reach key performance targets, said lower pay would not have [...]
City of London profits tumble June 8, 2009 CITY of London Investment Group, the emerging markets fund manager, has warned investors its pre-tax proffell by half in the year to end May to £5.4m, as “significant market declines” took their toll. In an unaudited trading update it warned it is likely to report the fall in profits, from £10.7m in the period to [...]
