Easyjet raises first half guidance after outperforming on passenger revenue January 21, 2020 Low-cost airline Easyjet this morning said that they had raised their first half revenue guidance after outperforming expectations for their passenger revenue. Easyjet’s shares rose over four per cent in early trading. The figures: Total revenue for the quarter rose nearly 10 per cent to £1.43bn, up from 1.3bn in the same period last year. [...]
BHP’s coal production slips due to Australian bushfires but guidance remains unchanged January 21, 2020 The ongoing bushfires in Australia knocked BHP’s production of thermal coal, the world’s largest miner announced today, but its 2020 guidance remains in line with forecasts. Mike Henry described his first set of results since taking over as chief executive from Andrew Mackenzie as “solid”, despite concerns about the situation in the company’s home country, [...]
Talktalk sells broadband business to Cityfibre for £200m January 21, 2020 Broadband provider Cityfibre this morning announced the acquisition of Fibrenation, Talktalk’s fibre networks rollout business, for £200m. The deal, which was delayed in November after Labour announced plans to nationalise BT, means that Cityfibre’s rollout target has risen from 5m up to 8m premises in the UK. As a result of the purchase, Talktalk, which [...]
UBS profit slides as Swiss bank misses 2019 targets January 21, 2020 Profit at Swiss banking giant UBS fell five per cent for the full year, as the Zurich-headquartered bank missed its targets for 2019. Net profit for the year was $4.3bn (£3.30), down from $4.5bn in 2018. Although profit in the final quarter of 2019 rose 129 per cent, this was largely the result of comparisons [...]
BP’s finance chief steps down after 34 years at oil giant January 21, 2020 After 34 years at the company, BP’s chief financial officer Brian Gilvary today announced his retirement from the oil major. Gilvary, who has been in his post for eight years, will be succeeded by Murray Auchincloss, who currently holds the same job in BP’s upstream division. Auchinloss will join the board on 1 July and [...]
Disney Plus to launch in the UK on 24 March January 21, 2020 Disney Plus, the entertainment giant’s subscription service, will launch in the UK on 24 March, it was confirmed this morning. The platform, which is set to take on competitors such as Netflix and Amazon Prime, will come with two payment models: £5.99 a month or £59.99 for a year. Subscribers will be able to access [...]
Climate change major concern for UK businesses, executives say January 20, 2020 Nearly two thirds of UK chief executives believe that climate change presents a threat to their business, with 25 per cent saying they are “extremely concerned” about the issue. According to PwC’s annual global survey of chief executives, UK business leaders now consider climate change more of a threat to business than populism, terrorism, protectionism [...]
Nuclear startup Tokamak raises £67m in funding round January 20, 2020 Tokamak Energy, the nuclear startup who are aiming to produce grid connected fusion power by 2030, have raised £67m in a funding round. The raise, which was the Oxfordshire-based company’s largest to date, involved both long-time backers such as Legal & General and new ones like Dr Hans-Peter Wild. Wild is best known as the [...]
BAE Systems to buy Collins GPS business for $2bn January 20, 2020 Leading aerospace and defence company BAE Systems has this morning announced that it will purchase Collins Aerospace’s military GPS system for almost $2bn (£1.5). BAE say that the GPS business, which is considered a market leader, should generate revenues of $359m a year in 2020, with potential for growth of 10 per cent a year. [...]
Trafigura to take six per cent stake in President Energy January 20, 2020 Global commodities trader Trafigura has bought a six per cent stake in oil explorer President Energy, which focuses on Latin America. The deal, which will see Trafigura invest up to $10m (£7.7m), will help the oil firm to reduce its net debt. According to the terms of the deal, the payment platform will take an [...]