Seatwave hits out at £1bn merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster January 26, 2010 SEATWAVE, Britain’s biggest ticket exchange, yesterday hit out at the US authorities’ decision to clear the way for a £1bn merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster. The US Department of Justice authorised the deal to merge the concert promoter that has Madonna and Jay-Z on its books with the ticket sales giant, but imposed certain [...]
Verizon sees delayed recovery January 26, 2010 Verizon Communications yesterday said it is facing a slower-than-expected economic recovery and plans to cut six per cent of its workforce, adding that it forecasts only a modest rebound in late 2010. After reporting fourth-quarter results that were in line with Wall Street’s expectations, Verizon said weak corporate spending hurt its traditional fixed-line business, offsetting [...]
Johnson & Johnson disappoints January 26, 2010 Johnson & Johnson yesterday reported better-than-expected quarterly sales and earnings, helped by sharply lower taxes and a return to growth for its array of medicines, medical devices and consumer products. But the diversified healthcare company, which is traditionally conservative in its outlook, predicted 2010 earnings would rise about five to seven per cent – barely [...]
Manchester United bonds dip in trading January 26, 2010 THE new bonds issued by Manchester United last week are trading below par, it emerged yesterday. The £500m worth of bonds were trading at between 93-94p yesterday afternoon, meaning they were yileding more than 10 per cent. Analysts said that tradional high income investors were wary of the bonds because of the high debts the [...]
Paulson and Friedman asked to explain AIG pay to banks January 26, 2010 FORMER US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and ex-New York Fed chairman Stephen Friedman will testify today at a congressional hearing on bailed-out insurer American International Group’s (AIG) payments to banks, a committee aide said yesterday. Paulson and Friedman, both former longtime executives and chairmen at Goldman Sachs, were considered among key figures in AIG’s government [...]
Home baking boosts Real Good Food’s annual sales January 26, 2010 REAL Good Food yesterday announced a 15 per cent sales increase over the year, with strong results in the sectors of sugar retail, baking ingredients and its bakery division, Hayden’s. Hayden’s reported a rise in sales to all three of its major customers; Marks & Spencer, Waitrose and Costa Coffee. Meanwhile, food service sales, which [...]
Thriller ahead for Michael Jackson fans January 26, 2010 THE Character Group, which had a Christmas hit selling Go Go Pets, is aiming for another top festive toy with the launch of Michael Jackson dolls. The company has won the UK licence to distribute four Jackson dolls made by Playmate Toys. Two of the dolls will be launched in August and two more before [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS January 26, 2010 PricewaterhouseCoopers Dr Paul Robertson has joined the accountancy giant to lead the crisis management part of its risk and business continuity management services division. A past winner of the CIR Business Continuity Management Consultant of the Year award, Robertson is a regular speaker at industry events. He has spent the past 13 years working as [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS January 26, 2010 MARSTON’S Numis predicts the brewing giant will report a year-on-year one per cent increase in like-for-like sales at its annual meeting on Friday and gives the shares a “buy” rating. It forecasts pub margins to be flat with falling utility and food costs and labour cost inflation offset by efficiency gains. PHILIPS S&P Equity has [...]
Siemens profits up despite sales drop January 26, 2010 GERMAN engineering group Siemens yesterday reported a big jump in pre-tax profits despite a sales slump. Siemens has cut its workforce by 22,000 in the past year as well as slashing its administration costs by €2bn (£1.7bn). Its profit rose 23 per cent in the first quarter to €1.48bn from €1.2bn in the same period [...]
