BP raises dividend as profits surge February 7, 2012 BP has raised its dividend to shareholders by 14 per cent for the first time since the Gulf of Mexico spill. Profits for the quarter to the end of December 2011 was $7.6bn (£4.8bn). That compares with $4.6bn for the same period the previous year. BP’s profits fort the whole of 2011 were $23.9bn compared [...]
TUI narrows losses February 7, 2012 TUI Travel, the world’s biggest tour operator, said it had significantly outperformed competitors in Britain during the first quarter, benefiting from the difficulties encountered by struggling rival Thomas Cook. The group, which operates the Thomson and First Choice chains and takes 30m people on holiday each year, said over a third of its summer 2012 [...]
UBS profits hit as Eurozone woes take toll February 7, 2012 UBS profits have plunged by 76 per cent the bank revealed in its latest quarterly results. Net income for the last three months of 2011 were 393m Swiss francs (£270m), down from 1.7bn francs during the same period the previous year. Business levels fell both at its key wealth management unit, as well as at [...]
Glencore and Xstrata agree $90bn ‘merger of equals’ February 7, 2012 Glencore and Xstrata agreed an all-share merger worth $90bn (£56bn) in the mining industry’s largest ever deal, creating a commodities powerhouse spanning mining, agriculture and trading. The ratio is a 15.2 per cent premium to Xstrata shareholders compared with its share price last Wednesday before word leaked out about the merger talks, a joint statement [...]
FTSE down as Greek deal delayed February 6, 2012 The FTSE 100 dipped 0.2 per cent on Monday after doubtssurfaced about Glencore’s potential merger with Xstrata and banks waned in the absence of a debt deal for Greece. The FTSE 100 index ended down 8.87 points at 5,892.20, remaining near six-month highs after strong U.S. jobs data boosted appetite for cyclical stocks. It had [...]
IMF warns that Eurozone recession would slash China growth February 6, 2012 A Eurozone recession could almost halve Chinese growth this year, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned. The IMF forecasts China’s economy will grow by 8.2 per cent this year. However, a Eurozone recession could cut this to 4.2 per cent, it said. The warning came as Greece was facing default if it failed to [...]
FTSE dips as Greece D-Day arrives February 6, 2012 The FTSE 100 slipped as the deadline for Greece to accept a new bailout or face a default which could trigger financial shockwaves across the globe arrived. Greece must tell the European Union by the end of today whether it accepts the stringent terms of a new bailout deal amid reports of divisions within the [...]
Vodafone abandons talks with Wind Hellas February 6, 2012 Vodafone has abandoned plans to merge its operations in Greece with Wind Hellas, in a major blow to the debt-laden smallest operator and throwing into doubt consolidation elsewhere in Europe. The third-biggest Greek telecoms operator is owned by its bondholders and needed a deal to better compete in the market that has been hit by [...]
House prices in slim rise February 6, 2012 House prices rose by 0.6 per cent in January figures from mortgage lender Halifax showed helping to recover some lost ground. House prices fell by 1.8 per cent in the three months to January compared with a year ago, taking the average price of a home to 160,907 pounds. “The continuing very low level of [...]
Randgold profits soar by 250pc February 6, 2012 Randgold Resources’ profit soared by 259 per cent to $433.4m for 2011, its annual results showed. The board has proposed a $0.40 annual dividend, up 100 per cent on 2010. Production for the year rose by 58 per cent to 696,023 ounces, reflecting increased ouput from a string of operations in Mali. Chief executive Mark [...]
