BT to pay off pension deficit faster than expected March 23, 2012 British telecoms group BT said it would pay down its £4.1bn pension deficit more quickly than previously planned, removing uncertainty over the scheme and raising hopes it will pay a higher dividend in future. Shares in the former telecoms monopoly leapt to a four-year high on Friday after it announced a lump sum payment into [...]
Metro Bank to add 260 more jobs March 22, 2012 Metro Bank, whose launch in 2010 marked the arrival of Britain’s first new High Street retail bank in more than 100 years, has plans to hire around 260 more staff this year and is looking for additional capital to fund its development. Chief Executive Craig Donaldson declined to comment on how much capital could be [...]
GSK to pump £500m into UK manufacturing March 22, 2012 GlaxoSmithKline, Britain’s biggest drugmaker, confirmed plans to invest more than £500m in manufacturing in Britain as it selected a north of England location for a previously announced biotech plant. The news – though expected – is a boost for Prime Minister David Cameron, who has made wooing the pharmaceuticals industry a priority in the wake [...]
Next profits up but warns of “subdued” 2012 March 22, 2012 The head of Next, Britain’s second largest clothing retailer, said he expected the UK consumer mood to remain subdued in 2012. “I don’t think things are going to get any worse than last year, they may get slightly better, but I don’t think they’re going to get a lot better,” Chief Executive Simon Wolfson said. [...]
Miners dent FTSE as UK retail suffers blow March 22, 2012 Miners pegged back the FTSE 100 in early trading as more data suggesting China’s economic growth is slowing took its toll. The first full trading session sine Chancellor George Osborne’s Budget speech saw investors shun riskier assets with banks also being knocked back. Factory activity in China was down for the fifth month in a [...]
Retail sales slide March 22, 2012 Retail sales suffered their biggest monthly fall in nine months in February and were revised sharply downwards for January, official data showed on Thursday, dampening hopes for a consumer revival this year. The Office for National Statistics said retail sales volumes dipped 0.8 per cent on the month to give an annual rise of one [...]
GSK in £500m manufacturing investment March 22, 2012 GlaxoSmithKline, Britain’s biggest drugmaker, confirmed plans to invest more than £500m in manufacturing in Britain as it selected a north of England location for a previously announced biotech plant. The news – though expected – is a boost for Prime Minister David Cameron, who has made wooing the pharmaceuticals industry a priority in the wake [...]
Shell signs first China shale gas deal March 22, 2012 Global oil major Royal Dutch Shell said it signed a production sharing contract with China National Petroleum Corporation to develop a shale gas block in China, the first deal of its kind in the country. China is in the very early stages of tapping its potentially large shale gas resources and the government wants to [...]
Kingfisher unveils growth plan as profits top forecasts March 22, 2012 Kingfisher, Europe’s biggest home improvements retailer, said new stores and a drive to improve profit margins would help it to cope against a tough economic backdrop, as it beat forecasts with a 20 percent rise in annual profit. The British group, detailing its new “Creating the Leader” growth programme, said on Thursday it would open [...]
Lloyds to sell buyout loans to Bain March 22, 2012 Part-nationalised British bank Lloyds has agreed to sell a £500m portfolio of mostly UK leveraged loans to private equity firm Bain Capital’s Sankaty Advisors unit, according to Reuters sources. Lloyds Banking Group declined to comment on the situation, while officials at Bain Capital’s London office could not be immediately reached for comment. The deal was [...]
