Signs of recovery merit no increase in QE scheme July 31, 2013 CITY A.M.’s board of economists has voted 8-1 against any increase in quantitative easing (QE) again. Last month our shadow monetary policy committee (MPC) was nearly in line with the Bank of England’s own, with the same voting result. All of the Bank’s panel rejected further QE. There was a mix of advice for [...]
Genel upbeat over pipeline July 31, 2013 GENEL Energy, the oil explorer and producer run by former BP chief executive Tony Hayward yesterday reported a five-fold increase in profit, and said a key export pipeline from Kurdistan to Turkey would be complete by the end of the year. Pre-tax profit rose to $109.1m (£71.7m) from $22.3m in the six months to 30 June, [...]
Essentra profits rise 22 per cent July 31, 2013 FTSE 250-LISTED plastic and fibre products maker Essentra yesterday unveiled a 17 per cent increase in half-year revenue and a 22 per cent rise in half-year profit, in its first results since re-branding from Filtrona. The British firm said that it is on track for further growth this year and that the acquisition of Contego [...]
Losses widen at Aer Lingus July 31, 2013 AER LINGUS yesterday said its half-year losses before tax widened 14.2 per cent to €28.2m (£24.7m), on revenues up five per cent at €657.9m. Costs rose 6.9 per cent, which the firm said was partly due to one-off expenses linked to an increase in transatlantic services and the launch of Little Red, Virgin Atlantic’s short-haul [...]
Private investigator rules tightened July 31, 2013 Private investigators will be required to hold a licence to operate in England and Wales, the government announced yesterday. The Home Office said it wanted to “ensure rigorous standards” in an industry where “rogue investigators” had been infringing privacy. The rule change will be rolled out from Autumn 2014. Those who break the new rules [...]
Boris unveils private rental tower July 31, 2013 London mayor Boris Johnson yesterday named Essential Living and Mace as the preferred developers to build the UK’s tallest private rented residential tower. The companies have secured institutional backing from real estate investment firm M3 Capital Partners to build the 44-storey tower on the former site of the London Park Hotel in Elephant and Castle. [...]
CPP secures £36m lifeline deal July 31, 2013 York-based credit card insurer CPP, which sells card protection on behalf of major lenders such as HSBC, yesterday agreed a new refinancing package which will secure its future. CPP, which was fined £10.5m by the Financial Services Authority last year for “widespread” mis-selling, has secured a £13m credit facility from its lenders, expiring in July [...]
City Moves for 1 August 2013 | Who’s switching jobs July 31, 2013 Premier Farnell The electronics company has announced the appointment of Andrea Dunstan as chief people officer. Dunstan has over 20 years’ experience in human resources (HR). She was previously group HR director at Wincanton. Prior to that, she worked at AstraZeneca. Royal Bank of Canada The bank’s capital markets division has recruited Sian Hurrell as head [...]
Best of the Brokers for 1 August 2013 July 31, 2013 AVIVA Broker Canaccord Genuity has maintained its “hold” rating on the insurance stock but upgraded the target price to 385p. It said Aviva, which reports results next week, would deliver better profits in 2014 and 2015 due to increased investment yields. WILLIAM HILL Analysts at Numis have an “add” rating on the stock with a [...]
London Report: US growth gives the FTSE fuel for a further rally July 31, 2013 THE FTSE 100 rallied yesterday as the quickening pace of the global economy’s heartbeat revived confidence that economic recovery can be sustained even if stimulus is withdrawn. Economic growth in the US unexpectedly accelerated in the second quarter, with gross domestic product growing at a 1.7 per cent annual rate, stepping up from the first-quarter’s [...]
