SRG signs deal to fend off demise February 23, 2010 SPECIALITY Retail Group (SRG), the owner of Suits You and Racing Green, has secured a deal from its creditors to save it from collapse. Around 98 per cent of SRG’s landlords voted for the company voluntary arrangement (CVA), which will see them cut rents by 40 per cent at the group’s loss-making sites. However, SRG [...]
Toyota apologises for its focus on growth February 23, 2010 TOYOTA chief executive Akio Toyoda will admit today to US lawmakers that the car manufacturer’s lack of priorities and focus on growth resulted in the recall of 8.5m vehicles worldwide. Toyoda said in his written testimony released yesterday that Toyota had “pursued growth over the speed at which we were able to develop our people [...]
Squarestone in AIM float February 23, 2010 PROPERTY group Squarestone Brasil is planning to raise up to £250m in what would be the largest float on London’s Alternative Investment Market in a year. Squarestone plans to invest the cash in new Brazilian shopping-mall developments and future acquisitions. The company will be chaired by Asda veteran Tony Campbell with Liberum Capital acting as [...]
Reckitt hit by OFT report into market dominance February 23, 2010 THE Office of Fair Trading yesterday said Reckitt Benckiser may be deliberately abusing its dominance in the supply of heartburn medicines, adding to the National Health Service’s (NHS) vast drugs bill. The watchdog alleged Reckitt sought to limit choice during the prescription process and said it would await the company’s response before determining whether the [...]
Insurance head quits HSBC role February 23, 2010 HSBC head of insurance, Clive Bannister, plans to step down at the end of March and will be replaced by Asia boss David Fried, in fresh evidence the bank’s focus is increasingly shifting to the east. Bannister, who took the helm of the insurance business in November 2006, was previously chief executive of HSBC’s private [...]
Intel leads tech investment push February 23, 2010 US technology giant Intel is working with a range of venture capital firms to organise $3.5bn (£2.3bn) in investment in promising technology, the firm’s president Paul Otellini said yesterday. Some $200m of the funding will come from Intel itself. The firm has organised a group of 24 venture capital firms to invest in technologies to [...]
Champneys holds up in downturn February 23, 2010 Champneys, the health spa resort chain popular with stars such as Kylie Minogue and Victoria Beckham, said yesterday that its offering had proved resilient in the economic downturn despite a widespread slump in discretionary spending. Champneys said it had posted year-on-year growth of nine per cent, while pre-bookings for March and April this year have [...]
Commerz hit by loan losses February 23, 2010 GERMANY’s second-largest bank Commerzbank remained mired in losses over 2009, after the group was struck by higher-than-expected trading losses, bad debt provisions and exposure to the crisis-hit monoline insurance sector. Commerzbank yesterday posted an operating loss of €2.27bn (£1.99bn) for the past financial year, compared to a €5.45bn loss in the depths of the financial [...]
AstraZeneca agrees to pay £500m in HMRC settlement February 23, 2010 ASTRAZENECA has paid Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) £505m to settle a tax dispute. The Anglo-Swedish drugs company owes the government over so-called transfer pricing – the price at which a group sells goods or services from one section to another. Astra will pay £350m next month and a second installment of £155m in [...]
Good results help Minerva February 23, 2010 Minerva completed an astonishing turnaround yesterday as it reported healthy profits, pointing to a sea change in the UK commercial property market. The real estate giant behind the iconic Walbrook building on Cannon Street reported after-tax profits of £45.6m for the second half of last year, compared to a loss of £186.7m in 2008. The [...]
