Illegal downloads costing UK music industry £500m September 17, 2012 ILLEGAL music downloads are costing the industry £500m a year in the UK, with around twice as many albums downloaded illegally than through legitimate sources such as iTunes, according to industry data out today. The most in-depth study ever of the digital music industry from Musicmetric has revealed that around 33m albums and 10m singles [...]
Japan to phase out nuclear power September 14, 2012 Japan is set to pull out of nuclear power by 2030, in what will be a major shift in national energy policy. The Asian nation is the latest to shun nuclear power, following Germany and Switzerland, after the tsunami last year caused a nuclear crisis in the country’s Fukushima Daiichi plant. Prior to Fukushima, Japan [...]
Construction output plunges 10 per cent in a year September 14, 2012 UK construction activity shrank by 10 per cent in the year to July, official figures from the Office for National Statistics said today. Over the month to July though, output rose 2.2 per cent. Over the three months to July, output from the construction sector fell by 10.1 per cent compared to the same three [...]
FTSE 100 up sharply on US economic stimulus September 14, 2012 The blue chip index jumped sharply in early trading, as it consolidated gains in the US in the wake of QE3. Headline miners led the index up, with Ferrexpo jumping 15.15 per cent in early trade, as metal prices rose on hopes of increased demand. South Africa-focused Aquarius Platinum jumped 12.48 per cent, Evraz soared [...]
RBS confirms Direct Line float September 14, 2012 RBS this morning confirmed plans to float its Direct Line insurance business on the London Stock Exchange in the largest share listing this year. RBS, which is 83 per cent-owned by the government, had to either sell or float the business by next year as a condition of its bailout in 2008. “We believe it [...]
Lonmin miners reject pay offer September 14, 2012 Strikers at platinum firm Lonmin’s Marikana mine rejected its increased pay offer today, quashing hopes that an end to the five-week long strike might be in sight. Lonmin this morning presented a pay offer to the striking miners at Marikana, offering to increase their salaries to less than half their demanded basic wage. The South [...]
Case to open against former UBS trader September 14, 2012 The trial against former UBS trader Kweku Adoboli accused of losing the Swiss bank £1.4bn will start later today. Adoboli, 32, was arrested on 15 September 2011 when UBS uncovered what it termed “unauthorised trading” when working as a senior trader on UBS’s Delta One desk, which trades exchange traded funds. He pleaded not guilty [...]
Chemring extends Carlyle bid deadline September 14, 2012 Defence firm Chemring this morning announced an extension of the deadline for private equity firm Carlyle to make an offer for the British company. Chemring said today that the takeover panel had extended the deadline until 12 October “to enable the parties to continue their on-going discussions regarding a possible offer for the Company”. It [...]
Fed launches open-ended bond buying programme September 13, 2012 The US Federal Reserve this afternoon launched a third round of quantitative easing. It will spend $40bn (£24.8bn) a month on buying mortgage-backed securities, with no end date. Interest rates are likely to stay “exceptionally low” until at least mid-2015, the Fed added. US economic growth cooled in the second quarter, coming in at a [...]
FTSE 100 down as BAE and EADS in the spotlight September 13, 2012 The blue chip index was trading slightly down this morning, as the mega-merger between BAE Systems and EADS grabbed the headlines. Investors were also cautious ahead of a key policy decision from the US Federal Reserve, which is expected later. Publisher Centaur was a big riser in early deals, up 11.56 per cent, on news [...]
