NAPF attacks Darling over pension tax plan February 25, 2010 CHANCELLOR Alistair Darling’s plans to reduce tax relief on the pension contributions of high earners will do “enormous harm” to company pension schemes, according to one of the country’s most influential pensions groups. The National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) yesterday called on the government, which will set out more of their plans in next [...]
We’ve not under-performed insist British Olympic chiefs February 25, 2010 BRITISH Olympic Association officials have defended the performance of their team in Vancouver after admitting they would miss the three medal target set by UK Sport. Chief executive Andy Hunt was keen to accentuate the positive, underlining his point with statistics. While skeleton gold for Amy Williams represents an improvement on Shelley Rudman’s solitary silver [...]
CITY VIEWS: WILL THE GOVERNMENT’S PLANS TO REDUCE TAX RELIEF ON HIGH EARNERS PENSIONS AFFECT RETIREMENT AGE? February 25, 2010 JASON NASH | BERRYMANS LACE MAWER “It will likely prolong retirement because pensions are currently so badly funded. The pension funds have suffered so much recently that implementing a new tax will now add to the age with which people retire. But maybe less so for the high earners.” AZAM ZAKA | EPROSPECTS “It won’t [...]
Hays profits fall by 97pc as market continues to suffer February 25, 2010 RECRUITMENT giant Hays saw its profits plummet by 97 per cent for the half year after the continued slump in the recruitment market took its toll. Hays saw profits before tax fall to £3.4m for the six-month period ending 31 December 2009, marking a significant drop from the previous year when profits came in at [...]
Minichiello horror as British pair crash out February 25, 2010 DEVASTATED Nicola Minichiello spoke of her heartache after crashing out of the bobsleigh to cap a disappointing night for Great Britain’s medal hopefuls. Minichiello’s medal dreams were dashed when she lost control of the sled on the third run, causing it to flip over and trap her and partner Gillian Cooke inside. The pair were [...]
UK transport companies in profits slide February 25, 2010 TWO of the UK’s leading transport companies have recorded pre-tax profit falls after difficulties with their rail arms. National Express and Go Ahead have blamed the losses on a lack of government subsidies for their rail franchises. National Express returned its East Coast Main Line contract to the government in November but could not prevent [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: WHAT DID YOU MAKE OF CENTRICA’S RESULTS? February 25, 2010 JONATHAN JACKSON | KILLIK CAPITAL Centrica was slightly ahead of market expectations. Earnings per share were maintained at 21.7p as a strong performance at British Gas Residential and a lower tax bill helped offset weaker wholesale gas prices and lower production. The outlook for 2010 is positive. LAKIS ATHANASIOU | EVOLUTION SECURITIES Solid set of [...]
CIBC and National Bank of Canada deliver stronger than expected growth February 25, 2010 TWO of Canada’s big banks kicked off earnings season with stronger-than-expected growth in profits yesterday, setting the stage for a rise in bank shares and upping the ante for rivals’ profits next week. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce said profit more than quadrupled in the first quarter, helped by volume growth in its retail markets [...]
EADS secures Airbus rescue February 25, 2010 EUROPEAN nations agreed yesterday to pump in €3.5bn (£3.1bn) to save the delayed Airbus A400M airlifter, but left key details unresolved after more last-minute haggling over loans and jobs. Technical problems have pushed the troop plane four years behind schedule and €11.2bn over budget, threatening 10,000 jobs. After savings and writedowns, Airbus parent EADS still [...]
Prior shows his mettle to lead England to victory February 25, 2010 HALF-CENTURIES from captain Alastair Cook and Matt Prior helped England to a second warm-up victory over a Bangladesh Cricket Board XI in Fatullah. Opener Cook retired on 52, while Prior, who left wicketkeeping duties to new sensation Craig Kieswetter, added a fine 64no off 57 balls as the tourists cruised to a seven-wicket success. But [...]
