Row over Uber app heading to the High Court May 29, 2014 TRANSPORT for London has asked the High Court to endorse its view that the Uber car booking service complies with laws on taximeters. The Licenced Taxi Drivers Association, which has criticised the app for unfairly competing with London’s black cabs, said the decision does not affect its plans to hold protests over Uber’s tactics on [...]
Profit down at Hastings despite 25 per cent increase in customers May 29, 2014 INSURER Hastings has announced a fall in pre-tax profit for the first quarter of the year, from £17m in the first three months of 2013 to £14m in 2014. The news comes despite an increase in customer numbers from 1.20m to 1.51m, a 25 per cent rise, and a 26 per cent increase in gross [...]
Pay policy blow for Lookers as 36 per cent vote against plan May 29, 2014 MORE than a third of voting investors voted against pay plans at London-listed car dealership Lookers yesterday, making it the latest firm to endure a rebellion. The firm said 36 per cent of shareholders who voted rejected its remuneration policy, while a further nine per cent abstained on the vote. All other resolutions at the [...]
Losses widen at Abercrombie & Fitch May 29, 2014 TEEN CLOTHING retailer Abercrombie & Fitch yesterday reported a bigger loss for the first quarter as heavy discounts hurt margins. The company’s loss widened to $23.7m, or 32 cents per share, in the quarter ended 3 May, from $7.2m, or nine cents per share, a year earlier. Comparable store sales declined four per cent, the [...]
Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus sign economic union pact May 29, 2014 AN AGREEMENT to form a Eurasian Economic Union between Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus was yesterday signed in the Kazakhstan capital Astana, with Vladimir Putin calling the event a “historical milestone”. The agreement was signed by Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, and Russian President Putin, and follows on from the previous customs union the [...]
Helical Bar profits top £100m as it reaps benefit of property boom May 29, 2014 PROPERTY developer Helical Bar said yesterday that pre-tax profits topped £100m for the first time last year after selling some of its major London developments. The group made £101.7m in profit in the year to 31 March compared with £5m in 2013, boosted by £65m of development earnings including the sale of Brickfields in White [...]
Mitchells & Butlers nearing finish line in its bid to buy Orchid pubs May 29, 2014 A BEVY of All Bar Ones and Harvester pubs could soon be flooding the high street after owner Mitchells & Butlers announced it was nearing a deal to acquire a portfolio of pub sites from operator Orchid Group. M&B, which runs about 1,600 pubs and restaurants across the UK, said it was in exclusive talks [...]
Tesco creates China’s largest food retailer with CRE venture May 29, 2014 TESCO has finalised a joint venture with the state-run China Resources Enterprise (CRE) to create China’s largest food retailer. The deal combines Tesco’s 134 Chinese outlets with CRE’s 2,986 stores, called Vanguard. CRE will own 80 per cent of the new chain and Tesco will have a 20 per cent stake. Tesco chief executive Philip [...]
Armour Group says sale of auto arm has bolstered bottom line May 29, 2014 UK ELECTRONICS firm Armour Group yesterday reported a rise in first-half sales, but a drop in profits from the same time last year. The company, which focuses on home and business audio systems, reported sales of £16.6m in the six months to the end of February – up from £16m last year. But profit before [...]
More Than boss joins AA Insurance May 29, 2014 The managing director of More Than, Janet Connor, is to leave and take up the same position at AA Insurance in August. Connor, who has been MD at More Than since 2012, will report direct to Chris Jansen, chief executive of the AA. Jansen said: “This is a vital move in the development of the [...]
