MEARS CLOSES IN ON OLYMPIC DREAM February 21, 2012 BRITAIN’S Chris Mears secured an additional place in the Olympic 3m springboard diving competition with a top 16 qualifying display at the FINA World Cup in London. Mears’s performance should all but secure his Olympic selection, subject to official confirmation by the British Olympic Association. Picture: GETTY
Man Utd cash down, revenue up February 21, 2012 FOOTBALL: Manchester United’s cash reserves plummeted £100m in the second half of 2011 as they spent big on signings and stadium improvements and bond repurchasing. Revenue was up 10 per cent to £175m.
Vettel outpaces Lewis in Spain February 21, 2012 FORMULA ONE: World champion Sebastian Vettel set the pace as the second pre-season test in Barcelona began yesterday. Britain’s Lewis Hamilton was third fastest, behind Nico Hulkenburg.
Tevez finally says sorry to City February 21, 2012 FOOTBALL: Five months on from going on strike Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez has apologised “sincerely and unreservedly” for his conduct.
Amec in £400m buyback plan February 21, 2012 AMEC yesterday announced a £400m share buyback and hiked its dividend on the strength of its 2011 profits. The engineer, which is a consultant to energy industry big hitters including Centrica and ConocoPhillips, said it had been buoyed by a string of acquisitions and was on the hunt for more. AMEC posted full-year earnings before [...]
Tarmac merger under fire from regulators February 21, 2012 THE Competition Commission (CC) said a proposed joint venture between Anglo American and Lafarge in Britain could damage competition for construction materials in some markets. Having struggled for more than three years to find a buyer for its Tarmac UK unit, which it bought as part of the larger Tarmac group in 2000, Anglo last [...]
Morgan Sindall profits slide 12 per cent but firm is hopeful about regeneration projects February 21, 2012 REGENERATION and construction firm Morgan Sindall said it was confident it could grow the business against a backdrop of tough market conditions, as the group unveiled a 12 per cent drop in profits. Profits before tax and exceptional items fell to £45.3m last year compared with £51.3m the previous year while revenues rose six per [...]
UK is ahead of deficit target February 21, 2012 THE GOVERNMENT’S deficit reduction plan is well ahead of schedule, with an unexpectedly large surplus in January bringing down the year’s projected borrowing figures, data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed yesterday. The surplus hit £7.75bn in the month, up from £5.20bn last January, and taking borrowing in the financial year so far [...]
CBI: Cut red tape and boost infrastructure to help growth February 21, 2012 CUTTING the budget deficit is the biggest step the government can take to boost business confidence and promote economic recovery, the Confederation for British Industry (CBI) said today, arguing that while tweaks to taxes can help firms, the government should restrain from a budget spending splurge. New measures introduced at the Budget next month should [...]
Economic activity kept on rising through January in US and Japan February 21, 2012 ECONOMIC activity stayed above its trend rate in January, according to the Chicago Fed’s activity index published yesterday. Though the index fell to 0.22 from 0.54 in December, it continued to point to economic growth, with the three-month moving average rising from 0.06 to 0.14. Any figure below zero indicates below-trend growth. Employment growth appeared [...]
