Linde forecasts revenue to rise despite outlook March 16, 2015 GERMAN industrial gas company Linde expects revenue to increase this year, after a difficult 2014 saw profits hindered by weak economic growth and adverse foreign exchange rate fluctuations. Group operating profit fell slightly to €3.92bn (£2.8bn), down from €3.97bn in 2013. However, the firm said it would have gone up one per cent had it [...]
PureCircle sweetens sales as big brands adopt stevia products March 16, 2015 Sweetner producer PureCircle announced sales of $43.2m (£29.1m) for the six-month period to 31 December 2014. This represents a 24 per cent increase on the previous year’s $34.9m. The company, which uses the sugar substitute stevia, said revenue was driven higher by its incorporation into high-profile brands such as Pepsi and Coca-Cola. “Stevia is now [...]
TA Associates swoops for stake in Chinese payment firm YeePay March 16, 2015 PRIVATE equity firm TA Associates has announced it has completed an investment in Chinese online payment service provider YeePay. Although financial details of the transaction were not disclosed, TA Associates partnered with Far East Horizon, a tailored financial leasing company, on the deal. YeePay is the first company in China to provide a single platform [...]
EKF Diagnostics posts £4m loss but revenue up March 16, 2015 MEDICAL equipment company EKF Diagnostics reported a pre-tax loss of £4m last year, compared to a £600,000 profit in 2013. Boosted by acquisitions made during the year, revenue at the company increased by 26 per cent to £40.1m, up from £31.8m in 2013. The Cardiff headquartered firm described 2014 as a challenging year with currency [...]
City Moves for 17 March 2015 | Who’s switching jobs March 16, 2015 Investec Investec Investment Banking has appointed Serge Rissi as a director in its financial sponsor transaction group. He has 15 years of M&A experience, and most recently worked as a director at Quayle Munro. Rissi has also held roles at UBS Warburg and Hawkpoint. Rathbone Brothers The investment management firm has announced the appointment of [...]
Best of the Brokers for 17 March 2015 March 16, 2015 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com YOUGOV Numis moved the research company from a “buy” rating to an “add” rating, ahead of its results for the six months to January. The broker said it expects continued growth from the firm’s BrandIndex and Omnibus brands, and also expects revenue predictability [...]
FTSE boosted by miners on good Chinese figures – London Report March 16, 2015 BRITAIN’S top share index rebounded yesterday after its biggest weekly drop of 2015, with mining stocks boosting the market on expectations of steady economic growth in China, the world’s biggest metals consumer. The FTSE 100 closed 0.9 per cent higher at 6,804.08 points after dropping 2.5 per cent last week in what was its biggest [...]
Wall St rallies as Fed rate hike jitters ease – New York Report March 16, 2015 US STOCKS rallied yesterday as the greenback eased back from its recent peak and worries eased about the timing of a Federal Reserve interest rate hike. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 228.11 points, or 1.29 per cent, to 17,977.42, the S&P 500 gained 27.79 points, or 1.35 per cent, to 2,081.19 and the Nasdaq [...]
Dollar surge: Just how much stronger will the currency get? March 16, 2015 The US Fed meeting this week will have big implications Yesterday saw some respite for those worrying about a surging dollar, as the euro rose just under 1 per cent to the $1.05 mark. But this did little to change the wider picture. Partly driven by divergent monetary policy paths in the US and the [...]
Arun Jaitley: The real man behind India’s growth story? – CNBC Comment March 16, 2015 Many people credit India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi with igniting fire in the bellies of his country’s citizens. He has made bold promises to transform and revolutionise India into a business-friendly, tech-savvy, industrial nation — he’s India’s version of the staunchly pro-business former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, if you will. But if you follow [...]
