House prices fall in November December 9, 2010 UK house prices have continued to slip, falling by 0.1 per cent in November compared with the same month last year, according to figures from the Halifax. The lender said that the average property was now £164,708 – 0.7 per cent down on a year ago. Low demand and a higher number of properties for [...]
BAE Systems to cut up to 1,350 posts December 9, 2010 BAE Systems is to announce cuts of up to 1,350 posts after the Government’s defence review and its decision to scrap the Nimrod and Harrier jets. The job losses are believed to be hitting several sites, including BAE’s Woodford plant outside Stockport, where the Nimrod was built. About 700 jobs will go from Woodford, with [...]
HMV cuts dividend as losses widen December 9, 2010 Music, DVD, games and books retailer HMV posted a worse than expected widening in first-half losses, blaming a sharp fall in sales on weak entertainment markets. The group said it was cutting its dividend and cautioned that despite more encouraging trading at the beginning of its second half, the start to Christmas trading had been [...]
IG Group revenue on the rise December 9, 2010 British spread-betting company IG Group said it expected higher first-half revenue and had won market share amid ongoing economic uncertainty which has led to subdued trading volumes. IG, which says it is the world’s biggest spread-better by revenue, forecast first-half turnover of £157m ($249m), up nine per cent. It said costs were in line with [...]
Mothercare steps up overseas expansion December 9, 2010 Mothercare is accelerating its expansion overseas, particularly in India, and has raised its profitability target for international stores. The firm, which is taking analysts on a tour of its operations in India, said it expected total overseas network sales to double to £1bn by 2014. It will open 175 overseas stores in its 2010-11 financial [...]
StanChart to hit record profit as bad loans fall December 9, 2010 Standard Chartered that it expects to post record income and profit for this year, helped by falling loan impairments and growth in consumer banking. Income in the second half of 2010 was expected to clock in at levels similar to the first six months, the bank said in an update posted on the Hong Kong [...]
Why switching accounts must be made less of a challenge December 8, 2010 Current accounts play a cornerstone role in retail banking and yet are a major barrier to greater competition in the sector. All too often customers say it is just too much hassle to change. As a result, inertia rules. Switching rates on current accounts are as low as six per cent, compared to 20 per [...]
Carillion looks to double international business December 8, 2010 Building firm Carillion said it would look to double revenue from its international business and grow its support services operation in Britain as public sector clients look to cut costs. Carillion also said on it expected to deliver good growth in pre-tax profit and earnings per share in 2010. “The group is well positioned to [...]
Game Group profits to be hit by discounts December 8, 2010 Computer games retailer Game Group said profit margins would fall by more than expected this financial year as it cut prices to retain share in a market being targeted by grocers and other retailers. Game, which trades from over 1,300 outlets in nine European countries and Australia, said on sales trends had improved in recent [...]
Stagecoach profit drives forward December 8, 2010 TRANSPORT group Stagecoach posted a 43 per cent rise in first-half profit, driven by growing ticket sales across its bus and rail operations, and said the positive trend had continued into the second half. The bus and rail operator on Wednesday reported a pretax profit of £108.7m on revenues 4.8 per cent higher at £1.13bn [...]
