Scotland seeks Grangemouth buyer October 22, 2013 THE SCOTTISH government has been talking to potential buyers for the troubled Grangemouth refinery and petrochemical plant near Falkirk, further raising the stakes in a bitter dispute between owner Ineos and the workers that may see the plant shut. “In view of the clear danger of a stalemate developing between the owners and the union, [...]
Cineworld aims to open 25 new cinemas by 2017 October 22, 2013 CINEWORLD will close or sell two of its recently acquired Picturehouse cinemas in Aberdeen and Bury St Edmunds following an order by the Competition Commission (CC), but will open 25 new cinemas. “We intend to open up to and possibly beyond 25 new cinemas… up until 2017,” finance chief Philip Bowcock told Reuters. The first [...]
Analyst Views: What did you make of Cineworld’s interim management statement? October 22, 2013 NICK BATRAM PEEL HUNT The third quarter was disappointing for the industry, but Cineworld’s performance during this period is reassuring. The benefits being derived from digital/CRM and the Unlimited card has enabled Cineworld to outperform the market, and there is much more to come. STEVE LIECHTI INVESTEC The interim management statement suggests strong first half [...]
EE targets 2m users for high speed mobile October 22, 2013 MOBILE operator EE expects to hit 2m customers on its 4G tariffs by the first quarter next year, its chief executive announced yesterday. “We should hit 2m 4G users in the next few months,” Olaf Swantee told City A.M. EE added half a million 4G customers in its third quarter bringing its total 4G customer [...]
Premier Inn and Costa openings lift Whitbread October 22, 2013 WHITBREAD said yesterday that the expansion of its Costa Coffee chain and Premier Inn hotels had continued apace, helping to boost sales and profits in the first half of the year. The FTSE 100 group, which also owns restaurants including Beefeater and Table Table, said underlying pre-tax profits increased by 12.6 per cent in the [...]
Pub chain reports growth as it offers £400m bond swap deal October 22, 2013 SPIRIT Pub Company yesterday reported profit growth of six per cent to £54m in the year to 17 August, along with a plan to ask bond holders to trade in their holdings for paper with longer due dates. Spirit said the extended bonds would enable it to continue investments in its estate holdings. The firm [...]
BA boss Walsh says third runway at Heathrow will never happen October 22, 2013 WILLIE Walsh, the head of British Airways’ parent company, said yesterday he believes the mooted third runway at Heathrow will never be built. Walsh blamed nimbyism as well as politicians picking vote-winning policies over long-term planning for his pessimism. Heathrow has been lobbying the government’s Davies Commission for its blessing to build a new runway [...]
Spain’s FCC soars after Bill Gates buys stake October 22, 2013 SHARES in Spanish builder FCC surged 13 per cent to an 18-month high yesterday after the company said late on Monday that Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, had become its second largest shareholder. The debt-laden construction company said Gates had bought six per cent of the firm for €113.5m.
A slick way to get onto Wall Street October 22, 2013 MYTHS may have it that the streets of London are paved with gold, but the pavements in Midtown Manhattan were coated with something almost as lucrative yesterday after a truck spilled around 200 gallons of oil during the morning rush hour. Traders more used to spending their days tracking the price of Brent crude were [...]
Dragon chooses to call UK home October 22, 2013 WITH UK firms like King choosing the US market to list, and Sir Richard Branson leaving the rainy British weather to take up residency on Necker Island, it’s refreshing to see a native Californian heading in the opposite direction. Tech entrepreneur Doug Richards – founder of School for Startups and former Dragons’ Den investor – will today [...]
