Carlos Slim gives up on a bid to buy more of telecoms firm KPN October 16, 2013 TELECOMS giant America Movil said yesterday it would not proceed with a €7.2bn (£6.1bn) plan to boost its stake in KPN after the Dutch telecom’s foundation blocked its bid, sending shares in the Mexican-listed company soaring. America Movil, controlled by billionaire Carlos Slim, owned nearly 30 per cent of KPN until the foundation exercised an [...]
Vertu’s sales motor ahead October 16, 2013 FAST-GROWING car seller Vertu said its revenues rose by a third to £837.2m in the six months to the end of August, helped by a string of acquisitions. Aim-listed Vertu said pre-tax profits rose 68.6 per cent to £8.6m, prompting the firm to predict that full-year results will be “significantly ahead of market expectations”. The [...]
Fastjet traffic continues rise October 16, 2013 FASTJET carried almost 935,000 passengers in the year to the end of September, the low-cost African carrier said yesterday. The Aim-listed firm, which is backed by EasyJet founder Sir Stelios Haji-Iaonnou, this week announced the start of its long-awaited international flights. Fastjet posted a two per cent fall in Tanzanian traffic compared to a month [...]
PepsiCo’s price hikes help keep revenues rising October 16, 2013 PEPSICO reported higher quarterly earnings yesterday and said it was on track to meet its financial goals for the year, despite a sluggish economy. The maker of Pepsi-Cola, Frito-Lay snacks and Tropicana juice said net income was $1.91bn (£1.2bn), or $1.23 per share, in the third quarter, up less than one per cent from $1.90bn, [...]
Hochschild on track to meet 2013 target for silver output October 16, 2013 FTSE 250-listed precious metals explorer Hochschild Mining yesterday reported third-quarter silver production that marginally beat analysts’ forecasts and said it is on track to meet its full-year silver target. The miner produced 5.4m ounces of silver in the three months to 30 September and said yesterday that it expects to produce 20m ounces of silver [...]
Tungsten’s float raises £160m to buy e-invoicing company OB10 October 16, 2013 INVESTMENT vehicle Tungsten has floated on London’s junior stock market after agreeing to buy an e-invoicing company. Tungsten, founded by Edmund and Danny Truell to acquire a business, raised £160m in an oversubscribed placing yesterday, giving the firm a starting market cap of £225m. Institutional investors in the placing included Fidelity, Wellington, BlackRock and L&G. [...]
4G price war to begin with new EE mobile deals October 16, 2013 MOBILE operator EE has beaten O2 and other rivals to market by introducing the UK’s first pay-as-you-go 4G plan, and a new cheaper £18.99 4G contract. The new plans are expected to open up super fast mobile internet to a large number of new customers, with 4G pay as you go starting at just £129.99 [...]
Marketing budgets revised up at record rate as online ads boom October 16, 2013 MARKETING budgets have been revised upwards for the three months to the end of September at a record rate, according to an influential survey. A net balance of 12.3 per cent of firms upped their budgets during the third quarter, compared to just 7.3 per cent for the second quarter, according to The Institute of [...]
Northern ups stake in joint venture October 16, 2013 Aim-listed oil and gas explorer Northern Petroleum yesterday said Wessex Exploration, its joint venture partner in an offshore French Guiana project, has decided not to invest further cash into the programme until its contribution has reduced by up to £1.5m. Northern Petroleum will fund the shortfall and increase its stake in the venture to 56 [...]
Anite tanks after profit warning October 16, 2013 Shares in Anite plunged more than 30 per cent to 76.75p yesterday after the software company warned that revenues in its handset business are likely to be down 25 per cent on the same period last year. Anite said the ongoing shake-up of the handset market, with mergers and takeovers for the likes of Nokia, [...]
