FTSE rally loses steam as energy stocks dip January 20, 2012 The FTSE 100 edged down this morning as energy and resource stocks pinned the market back after solid gains over the week. Greece and its private bondholders resumed debt swap talks today amid signs they are edging towards the deal needed to prevent a chaotic default by Athens. That helped to give financial stocks a [...]
Retail sales up 0.6pc in December January 20, 2012 UK retail sales volumes rose by 0.6 per cent in December, official figures show, after heavy discounting by stores. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) also said that sales rose by 2.6 per cent over the year to December. The sales figure for November was revised down to show a fall of 0.5 per cent, [...]
Vodafone victory in India tax battle January 20, 2012 India’s tax office has no jurisdiction over Vodafone’s purchase of mobile assets in India, the Supreme Court ruled on Friday, in a big relief to the telecom giant that has been fighting a $2.2bn (£1.4bn) tax bill in a long-running dispute anxiously watched by foreign investors in India. Vodafone, challenging the tax bill over its [...]
China’s sovereign wealth fund buys stake in Thames Water January 20, 2012 China’s $410bn (£264bn) sovereign wealth fund said it had bought a minority stake in Thames Water, the water network that serves London, marking the fund’s first acquisition in Britain. China Investment Corporation (CIC) said it had bought an 8.68 per cent stake in Thames Water through a wholly-owned subsidiary. It did not say how much [...]
Ex BP boss and partners to share £158m windfall January 20, 2012 Former BP chief executive Tony Hayward, financier Nathaniel Rothschild and former banker Julian Metherell will share a £158m payout after exercising a right to a 6.67 per cent stake in Genel Energy, the oil group they founded last year. The founders of bid vehicle Vallares, renamed Genel Energy after acquiring a Kurdistan-focused group of the [...]
IKEA posts record profit January 20, 2012 Sweden’s IKEA, the world’s biggest furniture retailer, posted on Friday a record profit for the fiscal 2010/11 year on the back of growing sales and a bigger share in almost all of its markets. Net profit at the privately-held Swedish firm, known the world over for low-price, self-assembly, flat-packed furniture, rose 10.3 per cent to [...]
Sir Fred is set to lose his knighthood January 19, 2012 SIR Fred Goodwin looks set to lose his knighthood, after the Prime Minister said the former Royal Bank of Scotland chief executive had been referred to a panel with the power to strip him of the honour. David Cameron said the Honours Forfeiture Committee would look at “what went wrong at RBS” and “who was [...]
Tesco wins Buffett seal of approval January 19, 2012 WARREN BUFFETT, the US investor known as the Sage of Omaha for his stock-picking prowess, has given Tesco his vote of confidence by raising his stake in the embattled supermarket, which shocked markets last week with its first profit warning in 20 years. Buffett’s investment vehicle Berkshire Hathaway has snapped up about £350m worth of [...]
US swoops on internet firm January 19, 2012 MEGAUPLOAD, one the biggest online content hosting websites, has been charged by US authorities for a massive copyright infringement scheme, the latest skirmish in America’s battle against piracy of movies and music. Four company executives have been arrested in New Zealand and will face extradition hearings, accused of engaging in a scheme that took more [...]
Goodwin must lose his knighthood January 19, 2012 IT is time for Sir Fred to become once again plain Mr Goodwin. He should be stripped of his knighthood, awarded in 2004 for services to banking at a time when the Labour party and the Scottish establishment thought he was a genius and a great business hero. He was no such thing and ended [...]
