Goring Holdings profits slip after a makeover for the London hotel February 15, 2015 The owner of The Goring, where the Duchess of Cambridge stayed on the eve of her wedding, suffered a 13 per cent slump in profits last year after it carried out a major revamp of the luxury hotel. Goring Holdings, a family-owned group which also owns two luxury residences in France, reported pre-tax profits of [...]
Apax holds a beauty parade for Sophos IPO February 15, 2015 LONDON-based private equity firm Apax has stepped up plans for the mooted £1bn stock market flotation of cyber security business Sophos later this year, it emerged yesterday. Apax is closing in on appointing a team of investment banks to work on the London listing for the Oxford-based tech firm, planned to go ahead after the [...]
Motor offences cost firms 16pc more last year February 15, 2015 COMPANY drivers racked up £9.42m in motor-related fines and penalties last year compared to the £8.08m accrued in 2013, British vehicle leasing company Lex Autolease said yesterday. The Company Driver Fines and Penalties survey, compiled from the data of 290,000 company vehicles, revealed that company drivers committed 144,955 offences in 2014, 20,525 more than in [...]
UK art exports soared to £11.3bn in 2014 despite new regulations February 15, 2015 London held on to its title as one of the world’s leading marketplaces for art after the UK exported a record £11.3bn last year, according to data from Thomson Reuters. UK art exports have now more than doubled from just £5bn in 2005 to their high last year. The increase will further dampen fears that [...]
Departments lose £5.1bn in just one year February 15, 2015 GOVERNMENT departments lost a total of £5.1bn in one year through avoidable errors, the Taxpayers’ Alliance has said today. The loss amounts to over five per cent of the UK’s projected budget deficit for this year. The majority was down to the Ministry of Defence (MOD) which made losses of £3.07bn. In the 12 months [...]
Investment tax break hits record as UK companies go for growth February 15, 2015 UK BUSINESSES will invest a record £2.8bn this year under the Annual Investment Allowance, as firms look to grow after years of underinvestment, commercial finance group LDF said yesterday. Introduced in 2008, the Annual Investment Allowance allows businesses making capital investments to claim a deduction of up to £500,000 from their taxable profits. HMRC has [...]
City Moves for 16 February 2015 | Who’s switching jobs February 15, 2015 GE Capital Isabel Fernandez has been named chief commercial officer of the financial services unit of General Electric. Fernandez has been with the firm since 2000. Prior to starting with GE Capital, she was vice president of Project Finance at ABN Ambro Bank. Mediobanca The Italian-based bank has appointed Felipe De Grado as managing director [...]
Best of the Brokers for 16 February 2015 February 15, 2015 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com SHIRE Jefferies reiterated the biopharmaceutical giant’s “buy” rating, following solid results for the final quarter of 2014, and an initial 2015 outlook in line with the broker’s expectations. Jefferies also said it foresees “numerous pipeline catalysts this year to drive potential earnings upgrades”. [...]
Britain close to deflation as oil drags on prices – London Report February 15, 2015 CONSUMER price inflation is expected to have fallen to a record low, with figures out this week likely to show it reached 0.3 per cent in January. The rate was 0.5 per cent in December – at a low since comparable records began in 1989 – and it is forecast to have fallen further, as [...]
US stocks are picking up after strong results – New York Report February 15, 2015 US STOCKS are poised for more upward momentum even as uncertainty over oil prices and Greek debt negotiations keeps the market on tenterhooks, analysts say. Strong fourth-quarter US company earnings and signs of an overall improving economy, alongside what appears to be the start of a bottoming in crude oil prices, have given equities support. [...]
