Former BP boss Lord Browne to chair Huawei UK February 16, 2015 Huawei, the world’s second-largest telecom equipment maker, yesterday appointed a trio of directors to its UK subsidiary’s board, including former BP chief executive Lord Browne as chairman. Lord Browne will become the first independent chairman of the Chinese company’s UK arm. Dame Helen Alexander, chair of marketing firm UBM and former UKTI head Sir Andrew [...]
Skyscanner hits turbulence but hotel and car hire revenues soar February 16, 2015 Edinburgh-based flight search app Skyscanner saw a slowdown in annual revenue growth last year, but posted growth in new markets like hotel and car hire. Revenues at the privately-owned company rose 42 per cent to £93m in 2014, a slowdown from the 96 per cent increase posted in 2013. In 2014 Skyscanner also expanded to [...]
Just Eat grows its presence in Latin America February 16, 2015 Online takeaway group Just Eat is preparing to push into Mexico with yesterday’s acquisition of the country’s leading takeaway group. SinDelantal Mexico will expand Just Eat’s business into its thirteenth country as the group looks to grow in the Latin American takeaway market. “We are delighted to be entering the thriving Mexican market, which offers [...]
Playtech snaps up Dundee-based Yoyo Games in $16m bolt-on acquisition February 16, 2015 Gambling software firm Playtech yesterday announced it has bought Dundee-based games platform developer Yoyo Games in a $16.4m (£10.6m) deal. Yoyo’s Game Maker: Studio software is currently used by over 750,000 developers creating multiplatform games for smartphones, PC or games consoles. Playtech said the Yoyo acquisition “will complete a three-pronged strategy into the casual games [...]
Quindell shares jump as Morgan Stanley takes a bigger slice of it February 16, 2015 SHARES in Quindell closed 9.5 per cent higher to 75p yesterday, after Morgan Stanley increased its stake to more than five per cent. Shares in the insurance claims processor are still more than half of their value compared to last year, after the company was accused of having “magical… paper profits” by mysterious US-based short [...]
Rolls-Royce embroiled in Petrobras bribery scandal following annus horribilis for both companies February 16, 2015 Rolls-Royce was dealt a fresh blow yesterday, as it faced allegations of bribery after being dragged into the ongoing series of scandals surrounding Brazilian oil giant Petrobras. The British company, which manufactures turbines for Petrobras, was named in court documents by a key informant in a multi-billion dollar bribery case against the state-owned oil firm. [...]
Asda fears £370m is at risk if it ignores climate change February 16, 2015 Asda bosses today urged companies to prepare for the effects of climate change, warning that it can see at least £370m of value at risk across its business. “Only five per cent of our fresh produce supply chain is not at risk from climate change impacts,” said Chris Brown from the supermarket. “For businesses, the [...]
Aer Lingus names its new chief executive February 16, 2015 AER LINGUS has appointed Stephen Kavanagh as its new chief executive as the Irish airline continues to negotiate a possible takeover by International Airlines Group. Kavanagh, 47, joined the airline in 1988 and has been promoted from the role of chief strategy and planning officer. He will take up the top job from 1 March [...]
Retailers shop for more space at Hammerson February 16, 2015 PROFITS at shopping centre landlord Hammerson have more than doubled after a “standout year” driven by the economic recovery and a return in consumer spending. The owner of Brent Cross in London and the Bullring in Birmingham said profits more than doubled to £703.1m in 2014 from £341.2m a year earlier. This was driven by [...]
Analyst Views: How did Hammerson’s performance fare over the last year? February 16, 2015 ALISON WATSON | INVESTEC We expect the UK consumer recovery to continue to feed through to improving, but low single digit, rental growth. France remains more challenging and whilst this is mitigated by increased exposure to the high growth outlet sector, we expect net asset value growth (NAV) to remain below sector average. JAMES CARSWELL [...]
