Inside Track: John Peace prepares to shake up Standard Chartered board November 28, 2013 In the past few days there have been suggestions that relations within the Standard Chartered boardroom aren’t all that they might be. The emerging markets-focused bank survived the financial crisis intact only to see its reputation damaged last year by getting caught up in a sanctions-busting scandal.“ The event led to questions over the chairmanship [...]
Thomas Cook’s cost cuts deliver return to profit November 28, 2013 THOMAS Cook shares leapt 14.7 per cent yesterday after the travel group said the first full year of Harriet Green’s turnaround plan had produced more cost savings than expected. The firm also beat forecasts with a 49 per cent rise in underlying earnings to £263m, while revenues rose 1.3 per cent to £9.3bn. On a [...]
Bottom Line: Green looks golden but she still has much further to go November 28, 2013 THOMAS Cook has come a long way in a year, but the travel firm’s new Let’s Go! slogan is still the watchword. Chief executive Harriet Green put the tour operator on a radical diet: closing 227 UK stores, cutting 2,500 jobs, more than halving its brands from 85 to 30, and selling its stake in [...]
Obama turns to Twitter for Thanksgiving help November 28, 2013 TURKEYS are once again making headlines this Thanksgiving. Popcorn, a four month old turkey, was issued a Presidential pardon this week after users of social media decided President Obama should free the bird – by voting with the hashtag #TeamPopcorn. Caramel, whose gobble was described as quick, clear and frequent, received no such pardon and [...]
Final call for City Mo-venturers November 28, 2013 THE TIME has come, chaps. With just one day remaining before December descends, The Capitalist is issuing a final call for you to perfect your furry upper lips and send us your best Movember efforts. As a reward for your month of extra grooming – as well as enduring sideways looks in the street – we’re giving [...]
Feeble lending still haunts euro area economies November 28, 2013 LENDING to the private sector is still declining in the euro area, with the European Central Bank (ECB) confirming an even deeper collapse yesterday. In the year to October, lending fell 2.1 per cent, the steepest drop this year. Loans to household were practically stagnant, up by 0.1 per cent in the same period. The [...]
Crossrail 2 gets a boost as 95 per cent back the new railway November 28, 2013 CROSSRAIL 2, the mooted cross-city line between south west and north east London, got a boost today when it was revealed that 95 per cent of the city supports the idea. Transport for London received almost 14,000 responses to a consultation on the proposal, the vast majority of which were positive. Just two per cent [...]
Kingfisher falls after caution on French market November 28, 2013 SHARES in Kingfisher, Europe’s biggest home improvements retailer, slumped yesterday as it posted third-quarter profit at the lower end of forecasts and cautioned that its markets remained tough, particularly in France where consumer confidence is weak. The firm said yesterday there was no obvious sign of an imminent improvement in consumer sentiment in France, its most [...]
BT Sport in exclusive NBA rights win causing another blow to Sky November 28, 2013 BT SCORED another blow to Sky Sports yesterday with the announcement that it signed an exclusive rights deal for the broadcast of top NBA games in the UK and Ireland. The deal will see up to 200 of the games broadcast during the season on BT Sport 1, BT Sport 2 and ESPN, with seven [...]
Boss of RSA Insurance in Ireland quits November 28, 2013 THE CHIEF executive of RSA Insurance’s Irish arm, Philip Smith, has resigned, claiming in a statement that he has been made a “fall guy” for the troubled business. Earlier this month the insurer issued two profit warnings in a week after it uncovered issues in the claims and finance sections of its Irish business. An investigation [...]
