Delivering people isn’t Uber’s $40bn dream – Bottom Line February 3, 2015 If Uber floated on the London Stock Exchange tomorrow – don’t hold your breath – it would be the thirteenth largest FTSE 100 constituent. Its $40bn (£26.3bn) valuation is larger than that of Twitter ($24.7bn) or Adobe ($35bn). News that Uber is exploring self-driving cars, mapping and vehicle safety shouldn’t surprise those who watch the [...]
Uber and Google rivalry heating up as both target driverless cars February 3, 2015 Controversial ride-hire app Uber is planning to research self-driving cars by partnering with a leading US university, a move that could put it in competition with its shareholder Google. Google has been exploring driverless cars since 2010 and now has a fully functioning prototype that it plans to begin testing on San Francisco roads this [...]
Aberdeen Asset Management share price hit by dip in emerging market appetite February 3, 2015 Volatility and a decline in investor sentiment for emerging market assets ensured Aberdeen Asset Management saw a decline in its portfolio during the three months ending 31 December. The quarterly results were particularly impacted by market conditions during December, which offset the positive inflows in equities seen during the preceding two months. A declining [...]
Bond yield fall drives FTSE 350 pension deficit February 3, 2015 THE PROSPECT of quantitative easing (QE) in Europe is already leading to negative side effects as the combined pensions deficit of the FTSE 350 reached a record high at the end of January, according to Mercer. The deficit was driven by a sharp decline in corporate bond yields last month, rising by £26bn compared to a [...]
Jones Lang LaSalle builds a record profit February 3, 2015 Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), the New York-listed property services giant, revealed yesterday that net profits jumped by a third last year thanks to strong fee revenue growth across all markets. JLL, which has been acting as leasing agents for the developers of the Cheesegrater skyscraper in the City and the Shard, runs 230 offices in [...]
Revival in the regions helps St Modwen smash expectations February 3, 2015 St Modwen smashed analyst forecasts yesterday after posting a 68 per cent jump in full-year profits, thanks to a revival in the regional property market and its burgeoning commercial developments. The company, which is redeveloping Britain’s biggest flower and vegetable market, New Covent Garden in Nine Elms, said pre-tax profits rose to £138.1m in the [...]
Belvoir to hit full year target February 3, 2015 UK LETTINGS agency Belvoir said it was on track to meet full-year expectations after strong growth from its network of franchises. The group, on Aim since 2012, said trading in the second half of the year was in line with expectations. It put growth down to the rise in the number of franchisees under its management [...]
A home loan from the boss February 3, 2015 A SCHEME that allows people renting property to take out an interest-free loan from their employer for their deposit is to be rolled out across the UK after launching in London last year. The scheme, which will work like the season ticket loan, already in place to help commuters pay for their travel costs, was [...]
Ukip’s Douglas Carswell tweets out Hello Kitty World game, starts trend February 3, 2015 Politicians have a difficult relationship with Twitter, with a gaffe never far away. Yesterday Ukip’s Douglas Carswell caught everyone by surprise when he asked his 28,000 Twitter followers to join him playing Hello Kitty World, in a tweet, complete with a picture of the game. https://twitter.com/DouglasCarswell/status/562568072415154176 https://twitter.com/DouglasCarswell/status/562635173712658434 Carswell has written a book on how [...]
Tory party chairman Grant Shapps steals Churchill’s thunder with three parent babies snipe February 3, 2015 With the 50th anniversary of Churchill’s funeral remembered last Friday, many have shared their favourite one-liners by the great man. This includes the dubiously attributed riposte to a female MP that “Tomorrow morning I will be sober, but you will still be ugly.” Churchill’s place atop the witty parliamentary banter table may be under threat [...]
