The lasting public legacy of the 2012 Olympic Games December 11, 2012 AS each year draws to a close I like to look back over YouGov’s BrandIndex and consider the big gainers and fallers of the previous twelve months. Usually this involves examining Britain’s most recognisable corporate brands, such as last week when we looked at how the competition between department store giants John Lewis and Marks [...]
Revamped press regulator to come next year, PCC head says December 11, 2012 A NEW body to regulate the press could be set up early next year, the head of current newspaper watchdog the Press Complaints Commission said yesterday. Tory peer Lord Hunt of Wirral told the Culture, Media and Sport Committee that he was working with newspaper editors on a plan for the revamped body. The new watchdog [...]
Sportech boss plots expansion in US after Connecticut approval December 11, 2012 SPORTECH, the horseracing and football pools operator, yesterday announced it had won approval for its latest US expansion as it bids to become the country’s dominant internet betting service. The company has been granted an exclusive licence to offer online gambling on horseracing and greyhound racing in Connecticut, opening it up to around 4m customers. [...]
Printing firm Domino tumbles as it puts end to 32-year record December 11, 2012 PRINTING technology company Domino Printing yesterday put a 32-year run of increasing revenues to an end. The company, which manufacturers printers for barcodes and labels, posted a one per cent decline in annual turnover to £312m, owing to weak sales in Europe. This is the first time revenue has fallen since the company was incorporated. Pre-tax [...]
Redstone swings to first profit December 11, 2012 IT firm Redstone has made its first ever profit, the company announced yesterday. Redstone was £448,000 in the black in the six months to 30 September, even as revenues fell 22 per cent to £28m. Chief executive Tony Weaver put the profit down to focusing on higher-margin managed services – in which companies outsource IT [...]
Ryanair bullish on Aer Lingus buy December 11, 2012 Ryanair chief exec Michael O’Leary said yesterday he is confident the European Commission will accept a new package of remedies offered to win approval for its bid to buy Irish rival Aer Lingus. The concessions to EU antitrust regulators were submitted on Friday. O’Leary said that if the proposed deal is reviewed “on the same [...]
Sberbank on track for growth December 11, 2012 Russia’s Sberbank expects that its 2012 net profit under local accounting standards will total at least 340bn roubles (£6.9bn), the bank’s chief executive officer German Gref told reporters yesterday. The state-controlled lender last month reported a 12 percent increase in RAS net profit for the first 11 months of the year to 332.3bn roubles. In [...]
Who’s switching jobs December 11, 2012 UBS James Broderick has been appointed chief executive of wealth management, UK and Jersey, at the bank. He joins from JP Morgan, where he was head of its asset management business in Europe, Middle East and Africa. Broderick previously held roles at Wellington Management Company. Royal London Asset Management Rob Williams has been appointed head [...]
Best of the Brokers December 11, 2012 BREWIN DOLPHIN Numis continues to give investment company a “hold” rating, and raises the target price to 188p. After a reorganisation, the broker thinks the firm can exceed its 20 per cent operating target, but admits changes could impact results for clients. INCHCAPE UBS has issued a “buy” rating for the car retailer, setting a [...]
FTSE 100 hits a nine-month closing high after strong German figures December 11, 2012 BRITAIN’S blue-chip index posted its highest close in nine months yesterday, supported by strong German economic data but enduring a late sell-off as it balked at technical resistance. The FTSE 100 closed up 3.34 points, or 0.1 per cent, at 5,924.97, edging off an intraday high of 5,937.93 on a bout of selling in the [...]
