BHP Billiton urges caution as market outlook turns bleaker November 17, 2011 THE HEAD of mining giant BHP Billiton, Marius Kloppers, sounded a warning yesterday that trading conditions for commodities firms were worsening as the climate became tougher. Kloppers reassured investors at BHP’s annual meeting in Melbourne, Australia, that the environment was not as bad as during the financial crisis in 2008, but said the group was [...]
Double boost for Bumi as debt deal is sealed and output rises November 17, 2011 COAL miner Bumi, a venture between Nat Rothschild and Indonesia’s Bakrie family, said it was on track to hit its 2011 output goal after a 35 per cent rise in third-quarter production, with prices ahead of expectations. The company has been in sharp focus in recent months as Bakrie sought to seal a deal to [...]
Put up or shut up poser for Clarity’s new suitor November 17, 2011 A MYSTERY third-party bidder for software firm Clarity faces a “put up or shut up” deadline on Monday after Jon Moulton’s vehicle’s new offer was rejected. The Takeover Panel told the unknown suitor, which is in advanced negotiations with Clarity, that it must show its hand by 7am on Monday. The watchdog acted after Clarity, [...]
NYSE nears competition deal November 17, 2011 Deutsche Boerse and NYSE Euronext have proposed to sell equity-option businesses across Europe and to give rivals access to a major derivatives clearinghouse, in an effort to win support for their merger from antitrust regulators. People working directly on the $9bn deal said yesterday that the exchange operators submitted the plan to the European Commission [...]
Carphone’s Ross approaches Cosalt November 17, 2011 Carphone Warehouse tycoon David Ross has made a bid for offshore safety group Cosalt. Ross, who sits as a non-executive director on the Cosalt board, has tabled a preliminary bid to take the firm private for around £400,000. The approach sent the firm’s shares down 39 per cent yesterday, putting its market cap at £3.13m. [...]
Boeing gets $21bn plane order November 17, 2011 The United States yesterday announced a massive order for Boeing jets from Indonesia’s largest domestic airline, Lion Air, to be showcased as US President Barack Obama winds up an Asia-Pacific tour. The sale of 230 short-haul 737 jets, worth $21.7bn (£13.8bn), is the largest commercial order in Boeing’s history, toppling a previous record set just [...]
Rothschild raises Bumi stake November 17, 2011 Nat Rothschild has raised his stake in miner Bumi to 11.7 per cent, a regulatory filing showed on Thursday, in a sign of confidence in the coal venture despite public clashes between the financier and his Indonesian partners. The scion of the Rothschild banking dynasty bought 110,000 shares at £9.11 each earlier in the day, [...]
Nama collects £710m in debts November 17, 2011 The National Asset Management Agency said it had generated profits of €118m (£101m) in the second quarter of the year. The so-called bad bank set up by Irish government to take over toxic assets from the rest of the banking sector, said it had generated net cash of €828m (£710m) up to the end of [...]
Serco on track despite austerity November 17, 2011 Outsourcing firm Serco said yesterday it had won almost £2bn of work to date in the second half of the year, and that it expected to meet full-year expectations. Serco, which runs services from UK immigration centres to the Dubai metro, said total work won this year stood at £4.4bn, in line with last year, [...]
Centrica blow as customers desert firm November 17, 2011 CENTRICA yesterday issued a profits warning as customers left to chase cheaper energy tariffs and unseasonally warm weather cut back on their fuel consumption. The owner of British Gas said that after it raised its prices by as much as 18 per cent, account numbers had dropped since the start of the year to 15.9m. [...]
