Travel chaos on Central Line as signal failure causes severe delays between White City and Leytonstone July 23, 2015 Central Line commuters were fuming this morning after the line was suspended in parts and suffered severe delays across much of the capital. Passengers complained of being stuck on the Tube without moving for 20 minutes this morning after a signal failure at Queensway halted the service between White City and Leystonstone. There are [...]
Premier Foods’ share price opens lower as sales drop amid supermarket price war July 23, 2015 Premier Foods' share price opened lower this morning as the group that owns Mr Kipling, Bisto gravy and Ambrosia custard revealed a sluggish effort to shake off the impact from the supermarket price wars. The figures: Branded sales were down 1.4 per cent while non-branded foods dropped 3.1 per cent. In total, group sales were [...]
Sainsbury’s is issuing £250m-worth of convertible bonds July 23, 2015 Sainsbury's is issuing £250m-worth of convertible bonds as it looks to shore up the group's pension funds, among other corporate interests. The bonds will have no fixed redemption date and can be converted into fully paid new or existing ordinary shares any time before the seven days ahead of the first reset day in [...]
TSB first half profits down 20 per cent as it reaches final stage of Sabadell takeover July 23, 2015 TSB has revealed a double-digit drop in profits for the first half as it enters the final stage of its takeover by Spanish group Banco Sabadell. The figures: The challenger bank said pre-tax profits were down 20.1 per cent to £44m, while statutory profits fell even further – down 44 per cent to £23.2m in [...]
RBS to pocket £24m as it offloads loans July 23, 2015 Royal Bank of Scotland is offloading a number of loans as part of a move to strengthen its balance sheet. The bank announced this morning it had agreed to dispose a portfolio of loans to an entity funded by Deutsche Bank and funds affiliated with Apollo Global Management. RBS will receive around £400m [...]
Thameslink Railway under fire after catering staff sacked with just four days’ notice July 22, 2015 Thameslink Railway has come under fire for cancelling a catering contract as it takes on the Southern franchise, resulting in up to 70 job losses. The contract, with Rail Gourmet, is being axed on Saturday ahead of the transfer of Southern's rail franchise over to Thameslink on Monday morning (27 July). Thameslink is thought [...]
Supermarket wars: The Co-op Food is going on a hiring spree July 22, 2015 The Co-op is clearly feeling bullish about growth opportunities for its supermarket. Fresh from investing £125m to back its entry in the grocery price war, Co-operative Food has just announced plans to go on a hiring spree. The supermarket has committed to hiring a further 1,000 frontline staff to work in its convenience stores. [...]
Tower Hamlets rejects British Land’s major Shoreditch Estate development in Norton Folgate July 22, 2015 Tower Hamlets has rejected planning permission for a major new development put forward by British Land. The council threw out proposals for the Norton Folgate scheme, otherwise known as the Shoreditch Estate, during last night's strategic development committee. Had it been successful, the development would have comprised 320,000 sq ft of office, residential [...]
FCA boss Martin Wheatley: Disappointed to be leaving with “unfinished business” July 22, 2015 Martin Wheatley, the FCA's chief executive who has been unceremoniously ousted by chancellor George Osborne has spoken of his upset at leaving while there is still “unfinished business”. Wheatley made his first public statement at the Financial Conduct Authority's annual public meeting this morning, just days after his shock departure was revealed on Friday. [...]
Flybe’s share price soars as turnaround plan takes hold and passenger numbers rise July 22, 2015 Flybe's share price was soaring this morning as investors digested the progress being made on the struggling airline's turnaround plan. The budget airline, which issued an encouraging trading update for the first quarter, said it had managed to cut the cost of a UK seat by 3.4 per cent to £51.92. It is [...]