General Election 2015: Alliance Trust CEO Katherine Garrett-Cox wants a sustainable economy and flexible working April 16, 2015 ELECTION COUNTDOWN: 20 DAYS TO GO Every day until the final week of the election campaign, we ask a business leader to say what policies would entice them to vote for a particular party. KATHERINE GARRETT-COX: CEO, ALLIANCE TRUST ■ You commit to creating a healthy, sustainable economy which is so very [...]
Etsy IPO: Online marketplace doubles in value on stock market debut April 16, 2015 Quirky online marketplace Etsy soared on its stock market debut yesterday, with shares popping from their listing price of $16 to a high of $34 a share, underscoring the ongoing love affair by investors for US tech stocks. The company, which allows vendors to sell handmade items, antiques and artisan craft products, priced shares at [...]
Eurocement bid to appoint new HolcimLafarge director rejected April 16, 2015 Swiss cement firm Holcim announced yesterday that it had turned down a proposal from major shareholder Eurocement for its founder Filaret Galchev to join the board of the new combined company it is creating with rival Lafarge. The companies announced the names of the candidates for the board of the new group earlier this week, [...]
South African private equity firm Brait in £1.3bn Virgin Active takeover April 16, 2015 High end gym chain Virgin Active was yesterday sold to a South African private equity outfit, scuppering longstanding plans by the company to float on the stock market. Brait, a private equity firm based in Johannesburg, will take an 80 per cent controlling stake in the group, which has 1.3m members and 267 clubs. [...]
Alstom facing further charges in SFO inquiry April 16, 2015 FRENCH engineering group Alstom is facing further corruption charges filed by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) as part of its ongoing investigation. Both Alstom Network UK, a subsidiary of Alstom, and Michael John Anderson, a UK resident who was previously business development director for Alstom Transport in France, have been charged with two corruption offences [...]
Debenhams cuts bargains and lifts profit April 16, 2015 EFFORTS to scale back on bargains and promotions has paid off for Debenhams after cheering investors yesterday with better-than-expected first half profits. Pre-tax profits rose 4.3 per cent to £88.9m for the 26 weeks to 28 February, beating consensus forecasts for profits of £85.6m. Britain’s second-biggest department store chain has been trying to wean customers [...]
Morrisons on hiring spree for shop floor while axing head office staff April 16, 2015 MORRISONS is axing hundreds of roles in its head office while simultaneously going on a hiring spree for its shop floor as part of radical shake-up under new chief executive David Potts. The ailing supermarket chain, which reported a £792m pre-tax loss last month, said 720 jobs will be cut in Bradford to create a [...]
Investment firm Citadel snags Ben Bernanke April 16, 2015 FORMER US Fed chairman Ben Bernanke has been lured to a role for Citadel in his first commercial role since leaving the Fed in January 2014. Bernanke will keep his role at the Brookings Economic Studies Program while he advises Citadel on monetary policy, financial market and global market developments.
Analyst Views: What was your reaction to Debenhams’ half-year performance? April 16, 2015 DAVID JEARY | CANACCORD GENUITY We remain concerned about Debenhams’ trading prospects for a number of reasons. It remains too early in our view to judge whether Debenhams has been successful in weaning itself and its customers from its traditionally highly promotional high-low pricing strategy. CAROLINE GULLIVER | JEFFERIES Debenhams’ first half results have beaten [...]
Unite the Union gave £1m to Labour at start of General Election campaign April 16, 2015 Labour raked in over £1m in donations during the first week of the official General Election campaign, double the amount the Conservatives raised during that same period. The figures, revealed by the Electoral Commission, who record donations over £7,500, show that almost all that money came from a £1,005,000 contribution from Unite the Union. Another [...]
