Get fit… and make a difference too April 2, 2012 FIT IN THE CITY Picture the scene: it’s 6.30pm on a Wednesday evening at the Reebok Sports Club and instead of being full of weary looking execs wishing they were in the pub, the reception is buzzing with an eager group of runners about to head out to a local community garden to enjoy a [...]
Total moves in relief wells to gas leak zone April 2, 2012 French oil major Total has mobilised rigs from its Fettercairn and West Franklin fields in the North Sea to drill two relief wells at its gas leaking Elgin platform, the company said on Monday. Two other vessels are also standing by near the platform to start underwater inspections and seabed surveys, Total said. “Both vessels [...]
Eurozone manufacturing weak April 2, 2012 The euro zone’s manufacturing sector shrank for an eighth month and at a faster pace in March, adding to signs the bloc is in recession as the downturn spread to core members France and Germany, a survey revealed. Markit’s Eurozone Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) dropped to 47.7 last month from 49.0 in February, in [...]
British Bankers’ Association head Knight to quit April 2, 2012 British Bankers Association head Angela Knight, who had to defend the industry during the 2008 credit crisis which rocked the sector, is to step down this summer, the BBA said. Knight said she would remain at the organisation while they search for her successor. “I have been at the British Bankers’ Association at a time [...]
UK manufacturing growth at ten-month high April 2, 2012 British manufacturing activity expanded at its fastest pace in 10 months in March, driven by a pick-up in new orders and increasing the chance that Britain’s economy grew in the first three months of 2012 and avoided a recession. Together with signs that a surge in firms’ costs could fuel inflationary pressures, the improvement in [...]
Entwhistle looks to raise £75m to launch new UK bank Scoban April 2, 2012 British financier Ray Entwistle is hoping to raise £75m to get his new private bank, Scoban, up and running although he said the process was taking longer than planned. Entwistle, who spent much of his career at private bank Adam & Co and helped sell the firm to Royal Bank of Scotland in 1993, said [...]
Irish Life & Permanent losses widen April 2, 2012 Irish Life & Permanent’s banking arm reported a wider full-year loss due to soaring impairment charges ahead of a split from the group’s life division and a government decision on whether it can remain as a standalone lender. Once lauded as the only Irish lender to avoid a state bailout due to its lack of [...]
DBS agrees to pay $7.2bn for Indonesia’s banks Danamon April 2, 2012 DBS Group Holdings, Southeast Asia’s biggest bank, has agreed to pay $7.24bn (£4.53bn) for Indonesia’s Bank Danamon, offering a hefty 52 per cent premium and raising questions among investors over whether it has overpaid. The deal, Asia’s fourth-largest banking takeover, would make Singapore-based DBS the fifth largest lender in Indonesia, one of the region’s hottest [...]
UK finance chiefs: The worst is over April 1, 2012 THE UK’S top finance chiefs no longer expect the country to face a double-dip recession, and are instead advising their firms to expand into an increasingly optimistic landscape, a new survey revealed today. Just 30 per cent of chief financial officers surveyed in Deloitte’s landmark poll now expect a renewed recession, down from 54 per [...]
Fuel drivers set for talks to halt strike April 1, 2012 TRADE unionists and fuel haulage firms are due to meet this week in a bid to avoid a strike. The Unite union has said it will take part in talks with dispute resolution group Acas and the seven tanker companies, where more than 2,000 drivers have voted in favour of industrial action. However, thousands of [...]
