CITY VIEWS: HOW DAMAGING WOULD IT BE FOR GEORGE OSBORNE IF THE UK LOST ITS TRIPLE-A RATING? February 14, 2012 ROB HUNT | NEED TO KNOW NEWS “I am still amazed that people take heed to what the ratings agencies say after 2008. I think a downgrade could affect the UK globally but everyone is in the same boat. The chancellor and the coalition government are doing what they can.” SHAUN GORVIN | BNP PARIBAS [...]
Zynga swings to loss but revenues surge February 14, 2012 ZYNGA, the US developer of games for social networking sites, fell to a $435m (£277m) quarterly loss last night despite beating Wall Street revenue expectations in its first results as a public company. Revenue soared 59 per cent to $311.2m, edging past analysts’ forecasts of $301.08m, as the FarmVille creator reported a 13 per cent [...]
Murdoch puts his top lawyer onto News Corp panel February 14, 2012 RUPERT Murdoch (pictured) is working to stem a growing rebellion within his newspaper business, as he beefs up the group’s oversight committee and prepares to fly back to the UK. The company’s new top corporate lawyer Gerson Zweifach has joined the management and standards committee, a source familiar with the company said yesterday. The panel [...]
Business school eyes town hall for campus February 14, 2012 WESTMINSTER City Council is close to agreeing the lease of Old Marylebone Town Hall, the heritage building where former Beatles Sir Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr both married, to London Business School. The council, which put the 1920s building on the market in 2010, said it had entered into exclusive negotiations with London Business School, [...]
FRC to look into tougher comply or explain policy February 14, 2012 THE FINANCIAL Reporting Council (FRC) has issued research suggesting companies should provide greater detail when they choose to exempt themselves from corporate governance procedures. The regulator, which has responsibility for promoting the UK Corporate Governance Code, will now consider the proposals as part of an ongoing process to revise its guidelines. The research noted that [...]
Berenberg set to increase its staff in the City February 14, 2012 GERMAN boutique investment bank and wealth manager Berenberg has boosted its headcount in London by one third, bucking the gloomy trend of lay-offs in the City. The bank is hiring investment bankers and analysts, against the industry trend of downsizing, which has dented many 2011 bank results. Lenders across Europe, Asia and the US have [...]
IHG banks on China to spur its expansion February 14, 2012 INTERCONTINENTAL Hotels Group, the world’s largest hotel operator, said it was is looking to emerging markets and especially China to drive future growth as a recovery in the US helped the group post a surge in full-year profits. The owner of brands including Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza said US and Chinese demand helped boost [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: IS IHG WELL POSITIONED FOR GROWTH THIS YEAR? February 14, 2012 WYN ELLIS | NUMIS 2011 preliminary results were encouraging with underlying earnings before interest and tax of $559m vs. consensus of $542m. Net debt at year end was just $538m and we believe that after the disposal of the [Intercontinental New York] Barclay as much as $1bn could be returned to shareholders. KEITH BOWMAN | [...]
Morgan Stanley left with stock after TDC deal February 14, 2012 US INVESTMENT bank Morgan Stanley was last night reported to be left holding a sizeable percentage of the share offering in the Danish phone group TDC, after its private equity owners offloaded £626m worth of shares. Morgan Stanley, the lead arranger for the share issue, increased the size of the offering by 50 per cent [...]
EU attacks big trade and budget deficits February 14, 2012 COUNTRIES like the UK, France and Italy are being investigated by the EU for allowing potentially dangerous economic imbalances to develop, commissioner Olli Rehn said yesterday. Twelve EU countries have failed to address problems building up in their economies, Rehn said, and after further analysis the European Commission (EC) may send them advice and action [...]
