Zuckerberg comments send Facebook shares up September 12, 2012 Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg sent Facebook shares up three per cent yesterday, as his first major public appearance soothed investors. Zuckerberg, speaking at a TechCrunch conference in San Francisco, hinted at new growth areas such as mobile and search, although he quashed rumours Facebook was about to launch a smartphone. The 28-year-old founder, who [...]
Goods trade deficit narrows in July September 11, 2012 The goods trade deficit narrowed in a July, driven by a sharp rise to exports to outside the EU. The UK’s deficit on trade in goods and services fell to £1.5bn over the month, compared with a deficit of £4.3bn in June, according to official figures from the Office for National Statistics. Exports to countries [...]
FTSE 100 down as blue chip Burberry leads fallers September 11, 2012 The leading share index opened down this morning, tracking falls in the US and Asia, as investors waited for key decisions over European Central Bank bond buying and US quantitative easing. Fashion retailer Burberry led the fallers, down almost 19 per cent as the firm warned of a sales slowdown. It said annual profit would [...]
Burberry shares plummet on profit warning September 11, 2012 Burberry shares plunged by almost 19 per cent in early trading as the fashion retailer cut its profit forecast for the full year. The group, which has been hit by falling sales in China, said like-for-like sales were unchanged year on year, with sales dropping off in recent weeks. The FTSE 100 company, whose trademark [...]
iPhone 5 could boost US GDP by 0.5 per cent September 11, 2012 The new iPhone, which is expected to be unveiled tomorrow, could boost the US’s GDP by up to 0.5 per cent, according to JP Morgan’s chief economist Michael Feroli. He wrote in a note to clients: “Calculated using the so-called retail control method, sales of iPhone 5 could boost annualised GDP growth by $3.2bn (£2bn), [...]
BAA airport traffic falls on ‘Olympics effect’ September 11, 2012 BAA reported a two per cent annual drop in passenger numbers during August, as the ‘Olympics effect’ meant UK passengers stayed at home and overseas visitors delayed their journeys. The airport operator said 9.5m passengers passed through its five airports last month. At Heathrow, there was a drop of 1.9 per cent to 6.5m passengers [...]
Qatar yet to make decision on Glencore offer September 11, 2012 Qatar Holding, the second-largest shareholder in Xstrata, said this morning it was yet to decide on the revised offer put forward by Glencore yesterday. Commodities giant Glencore laid out its final £36bn offer for miner Xstrata yesterday, after months of a stand-off with Qatar, which demanded an improved merger ratio. Glencore yesterday offered 3.02 new [...]
FTSE 100 opens flat as investors bide time September 10, 2012 The leading share index opened modestly lower this morning, as investors were cautious ahead of key Eurozone and US Federal Reserve meetings this week. A selection of miners and retailers led the index up. Specialist engineering company Lamprell added nearly five per cent in early deals on news that it signed a joint venture deal [...]
Japan Airlines sets IPO at £5.3bn September 10, 2012 Japan Airlines’ 663bn yen (£5.29bn) initial public offering (IPO) is set to be the second-biggest IPO this year after Facebook. The airline, which went bankrupt in 2010 but has since returned to profit, set the IPO price at 3,790 yen per share this morning. The shares will begin trading in Tokyo on 19 September. In [...]
Business optimism at 20-year low September 10, 2012 Confidence among businesses slumped to a 20-year low in August, according to a survey by accountancy group BDO. The group’s optimism index fell for the sixth consecutive month to 89.1 in August from 93.1 in July. Figures above 95 indicate growth. The index, which measures business performance expectations two quarters ahead, follows more upbeat data [...]
