Gonzalo to blast rush hour and hit flights October 20, 2014 Gusts of up to 70mph are predicted to hit Britain today as the last of Hurricane Gonzalo sweeps through. The Met Office issued a gale warning, as the winds hit Blackpool (above), predicting difficult conditions during today’s morning rush hour and damage to trees. It may be very disruptive and several of today’s British Airways [...]
Former JJB chief will not testify at trial October 20, 2014 Former chief executive of JJB Sports, Christopher Ronnie, 52, accused of a £1m fraud, will not give evidence in his own defence. He was expected to testify yesterday at Southwark Crown Court. He denies three counts of fraud and two of furnishing false information. Ronnie, from Wilmslow, Cheshire, is accused of receiving three payments from [...]
Former No10 adviser Rohan Silva: City is a boon for tech October 20, 2014 Former No10 adviser Rohan Silva spoke on the challenges and opportunities for startups in London, including the sheer volume of capital available in a city with such a dominant financial sector. “There’s one place in Europe that has a venture capital industry, and that’s London. Lots of places like Berlin, Copenhagen, Stockholm have some funds, [...]
Stars’ talent agency snapped up October 20, 2014 THE TALENT agency which represents sports and movie stars including Cristiano Ronaldo and Cate Blanchett (pictured) was yesterday taken over by private equity giant TPG. Creative Artists Agency, the Hollywood talent agency, has sold a controlling stake to TPG, which is led by veteran dealmaker David Bonderman.
No slowdown for Halliburton amid oil slide October 20, 2014 HALLIBURTON, the world’s number two oilfield services provider, said there were no signs of a slowdown in drilling activity despite the recent 25 per cent fall in oil prices. Halliburton’s shares rose about 2.5 per cent in early trading after the company reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit and raised its quarterly dividend. “We believe industry [...]
BSkyB snaps up bigger stake in Sky Deutschland October 20, 2014 PAY TV group BSkyB said yesterday it would own at least 69 per cent of Sky Deutschland once the takeover period closes, after more minority investors than expected signed up for the offer. The UK’s dominant pay TV provider agreed in June to pay $9bn for Rupert Murdoch’s 57 per cent stake in Sky Deutschland [...]
Tata Steel gets strong rating October 20, 2014 TATA Steel’s move to offload its long product division in the UK and refinance its existing bank debt will be credit positive, Moody’s Investors Services said yesterday. “The sale would be credit positive… because it would dispose of loss-making assets, while its refinancing alleviates funding pressure for the next six years,” it said in its [...]
BP to restart Rhum gas field October 20, 2014 BP IS set to resume production at one of the UK’s most important North Sea gas fields, nearly four years after the company was forced to curtail output because of sanctions against Iran, which owns a 50 per cent stake in the field. The oil giant said gas had begun to flow out of the [...]
Best of the Brokers for 21 October 2014 October 20, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com AVATION WH Ireland reiterated its “buy” rating, with a target price of 206p. It noted the aircraft leasing business’ conditional agreements with Thomas Cook Airlines, as well as the changes it is set to make to its depreciation policy which should “bring it [...]
FTSE 100 falls again as price slump hits oil sector – London Report October 20, 2014 Britain’s top equity index resumed its fall yesterday, giving back half the gains made in the previous session, as investors reckoned with reduced earnings expectations for oil companies after a slump in oil prices. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed down 43.22 points, or 0.7 per cent, at 6,267.07 points, after rising 114 points on [...]
