More than half of public want BBC licence fee to be scrapped July 7, 2014 Just over half the public believes the TV licence fee should be scrapped and the BBC forced to find new ways to fund itself, according to a poll published yesterday. The broadcaster should generate income from advertising rather than relying on taxes or higher licence fee funds, the findings suggest. The ComRes survey of 2,049 [...]
UK manufacturers’ optimism hit by rising costs July 7, 2014 Optimism among UK manufacturers dipped in June for the first time in 14 months, as challenging operating conditions threaten to slow confidence growth in the sector, according to a survey released today by accountants and business advisers BDO LLP. The BDO optimism sub-index for the manufacturing sector, which predicts growth expectations in six months’ time, [...]
Life’s a beach as teams compete in the Wharf July 6, 2014 It may have been a stormy weekend but Wood Wharf still had a touch of the sunshine with Action for Kids’ beach volleyball tournament going on. The women’s champions were Laura Morgantini and Gabi Kontopoulos Medricka after a win against Petra Jurikova and Jo Healy. Of course, it’s all in aid of Action for Kids. [...]
Phase Eight private equity owners mull sale July 6, 2014 PRIVATE equity firm Tower Brook is said to be considering a sale of Phase Eight three years after buying a controlling stake in the clothing chain. The 35-year-old brand, which reported underlying adjusted profits of £24m last year, could raise up to £250m, according to the Sunday Telegraph.
Best of the Brokers for 07 July 2014 July 6, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com DIRECT LINE INSURANCE GROUP Citigroup has upgraded to “buy” from “neutral”, lifting the target price to 306p from 244p. The broker believes Direct Line can increasingly use its market-leading position to give it a competitive advantage, with further improvements in costs savings and [...]
London report: Housing data to show soaring market levelling July 6, 2014 Housing prices are likely to be in focus this week, as two surveys show prices are still rising, though the market is levelling off. The RICS survey, published today, is expected to show less growth than in past months. Barclays’ Armela Mancellari said: “We expect the overall balance to have edged down [...]
Wall St The Week Ahead: All eyes on Fed minutes for rate hike info July 6, 2014 WITH US stocks hitting record highs just before the Independence Day break last week on the back of strong jobs growth, the Bank for International Settlements – the global forum for central banks – said that markets were in a “euphoric” state and that keeping interest rates too low for too long could sow the [...]
Tory tennis match sells for £160,000 July 3, 2014 A BRITISH banker – and wife of a former Putin government minister – splashed out £160,000 for a game of tennis with PM David Cameron and London mayor Boris Johnson, it emerged yesterday. Lubov Chernukhin bought the top lot in the auction at the Tory party fundraiser on Wednesday. City A.M. revealed that a bottle of champagne sold [...]
IPO-bound SSP signs £135m deal for five units at Stansted Airport July 3, 2014 Food concession group SSP yesterday announced it had won a £135m seven-year deal to run five new units at London Stansted Airport. SSP, which is due to launch a flotation in the next few days, said that one of the concessions would be a high-end bakery concept, the James Martin Kitchen, created in partnership with the TV [...]
Sweden cuts interest rates to avoid deflation July 3, 2014 Sweden’s central bank yesterday cut interest rates by an unexpectedly large 50 basis points, to 0.25 per cent, in an attempt to head off deflation. The cut led to a sharp fall in the Swedish krona with it losing two per cent against both the US dollar and euro. The central bank said that because [...]
