FTSE buoyed by miners and banks March 8, 2012 The FTSE 100 pushed higher this morning as investors gained confidence in Greece’s chances of completing a lifesaving bond swap later today. Major banks and pension funds, representing about 40 per cent of Greece’s outstanding debt, threw their weight behind Athens’ bond swap offer to private creditors yesterday. That should be eno€130bn fund for Greece [...]
Schroders weathers volatile 2011 March 8, 2012 Blue chip investment manager Schroders (SDR.L) said an injection of institutional money kept its net inflows for 2011 positive against a backdrop of wobbly markets that sent many retail clients headed for the exits. In full year earnings for 2011, Schroders said total net inflows were £3.2bn with a £6.8bn net gain in institutional money [...]
Cineworld profit lifted by blockbusters March 8, 2012 British cinema chain Cineworld posted a higher full-year profit helped by a string of popular releases during the Christmas season, and said it expected a strong blockbuster line-up for 2012. The operator of cinema complexes throughout the UK and Ireland said films such as the latest in the Harry Potter, Pirates of the Caribbean and [...]
Aviva earnings pick up after Eurozone blow March 8, 2012 Aviva reported a bigger-than-expected six per cent rise in its 2011 earnings, helped by better profit margins in its life insurance business, and said capital reserves had recovered from a hit they took last year as a result of the Eurozone debt crisis. The company, Britain’s second-biggest insurer, had an operating profit for the year [...]
Morrisons profit up – but predicts tough 2012 March 8, 2012 Britain’s fourth-biggest grocer Wm Morrison said the UK grocery market was likely to remain subdued in the coming year despite easing inflationary pressures as it posted a eight per cent rise in year profit. “We expect a challenging year in 2012,” the firm said on Thursday, adding that it still expected to deliver profitable growth. [...]
John Lewis cuts staff bonus as profit falls March 7, 2012 Britain’s biggest department store group John Lewis cut its staff bonus for the first time in three years and posted a 3.8 per cent fall in year profit, showing even the firm’s affluent customer base is not immune to straitened times. The 148-year-old employee-owned group, whose stakeholder business model has been lauded by politicians including [...]
FTSE resilient despite Greek deal fears March 7, 2012 The FTSE 100 proved resilient this morning as strong corporate results shored up the index despite falls on other markets across the globe. European shares overall steadied after two straight days of losses as investors braced for news on whether Greece would succeed in restructuring its huge debt pile. The Greek bond swap deal must [...]
Six charged over Olympus scandal March 7, 2012 Tokyo prosecutors on Wednesday charged Olympus Corp and six key figures in the $1.7bn (£1.1bn) accounting fraud at the camera and endoscope maker, tightening their case in the investigation of one of Japan’s biggest corporate scandals. Prosecutors charged ex-chairman Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, former executive vice-president Hisashi Mori and former auditor Hideo Yamada with inflating the company’s [...]
NAB ‘to sell off UK assets’ March 7, 2012 National Australia Bank is likely to position its UK bank assets for sale after separating off its troubled commercial real-estate business at the end of an ongoing review of its UK operations, sources told Reuters. The result of the review is due in May, and it is still classified within NAB as an operational review [...]
Admiral profit rise fuelled by UK growth March 7, 2012 Motor insurer Admiral said its 2011 profit rose by a better-than-expected 13 percent, with continued strong growth in customer numbers in the UK outweighing a wider loss at its fledgling international operations. Admiral, which insures one in ten cars on Britain’s roads, made a pre-tax profit of £299m last year, it said on Wednesday, up [...]
