Miners peg back markets October 31, 2011 European shares fell early in the session with miners hurt by falling metals prices while the afterglow of last week’s Eurozone debt deal began to fade. Miners were dented by Japan wading into the currency markets to rein in the value of the soaring yen, which sent the dollar up. A stronger dollar makes dollar-priced [...]
Ofgem fines Npower £2m October 31, 2011 Energy regulator Ofgem has fined Npower £2m for failing to handle complaints properly. Ofgem said Npower had not recorded complaints properly or given dissatisfied complainers details of the Energy Ombudsman’s redress service. It added that Npower had now remedied all of the breaches of the regulations for which it was fined. A spokesman for NPower [...]
JJB issues profit warning as losses widen October 31, 2011 JJB Sports, the struggling British retailer rescued by a deal with landlords in March, posted wider first-half losses and warned the full-year outcome was likely to fall short of internal expectations. “As with most retailers, our year-end outturn is dependent on Christmas trading, nevertheless if current trading conditions continue our year-end outturn is likely to [...]
Japan moves to rein in soaring yen October 31, 2011 Japan sold the yen for the second time in less than three months after it hit another record high against the dollar, saying it intervened to counter speculative moves that were hurting the economy. Finance Minister Jun Azumi said Tokyo had stepped into the market and would continue to intervene until it was satisfied with [...]
Barclays profits up as bad debt costs fall October 31, 2011 Barclays reported a five per cent rise in underlying quarterly profit as lower charges for bad debt at the bank offset a third consecutive sharp fall in investment banking revenues as the euro zone financial crisis deepened. Barclays said it did not intend to raise any equity capital. It said pre-tax profit in the three [...]
FTSE extends rally after Eurozone deal October 28, 2011 THE FTSE 100 resumed its rally in early trading but gains were modest compared with yesterday when the Eurozone’s debt plan breathed new life into flagging global markets. World stocks headed for their best week in over two years bolstered by EU leaders’ efforts to contain the Eurozone debt crisis by increasing the bailout fund [...]
Legal action launched to move St Paul’s protesters October 28, 2011 The Corporation of London will be taken to evict protesters camped outside St Paul’s Cathedral, it said. The corporation’s planning and transport committee voted to proceed with court action to remove tents from the public highways by the cathedral. It came as the cathedral doors reopened after being closed for a week. The Occupy London [...]
Banks still failing to lend to small businesses October 28, 2011 British small businesses suffered a dramatic drop in successful loan applications between 2007 and 2010. Successful applications from the fast-growing young companies known as gazelles fell the most, dropping from 90 per cent to just 50 per cent in 2010, according to the Office for National Statistics. The decrease in funding for these companies will [...]
Shire reports strong third quarter growth October 28, 2011 Drug company Shire has reported third quarter growth of 24 per cent, boosted by demand for its hyperactivity drugs and medicines for rare diseases. Britain’s third-largest pharmaceuticals company beat analysts’ predictions to record revenue of $1.09bn (£0.67bn) for the three months to September. Predicted full-year profit figures have been rising, and the company is confident [...]
Total’s profits rise on oil price increase October 28, 2011 French oil firm Total increased profits by 13 per cent in the three months to September. Higher prices and improved profitability in its refining business contributed to the rise. The company, France’s largest, expressed optimism for future growth after three major discoveries in the quarter in Azerbaijan, French Guyana and Norway. However, its underlying result [...]
