CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS June 29, 2009 ExecutionMarcus Ashworth has joined the agency broker to help drive Asian equity sales in its London office. Ashworth joins from Mitsubishi UFJ Securities, where he was a director in the equity derivative and equity research sales team with responsibility for Asia. Prior to that, he held a number of positions at National Australia Bank, Bridport, [...]
Capital’s hotels attract visitors June 29, 2009 London hoteliers saw occupancy rates increase again in May, but regional hotels continued to struggle, according to monthly figures released today by PKF Hotel Consultancy Services. Occupancy across London’s hotels increased 1.3 per cent year on year in May, from 81.0 per cent last year to 82.1 per cent this year. Room rate did not [...]
Rank’s bingo appointment June 29, 2009 Gaming group Rank has appointed Mark Jones as managing director of Mecca Bingo, its British bingo clubs business. Jones, 48, has held a number of senior management posts in the leisure industry, including chief executive of Pizza Hut UK (while at Whitbread), chief executive of Yates Group and most recently as executive chairman of Premium [...]
Relationships before business June 29, 2009 Maintaining face-to-face relationships remains of vital importance to businesses in the face of the recession, according to the findings of a report for Barclays Commercial Business Travel. The survey found 75 per cent of business people expect to travel more, or the same amount, this year compared with 2008. And 50 per cent said they [...]
Home lending still difficult, warns Bank June 29, 2009 MORTGAGE lending saw its weakest rise on record last month, according to the Bank of England, signalling the squeeze on home lending is far from over, despite recent signs that the property slump could be levelling out. The number of home loan approvals rose for the fourth consecutive month in May, climbing from 43,191 in [...]
Asos sales double as the website defies downturn June 29, 2009 ONLINE fashion store Asos yesterday said it had defied the retail recession, announcing that sales doubled last year thanks to the trend towards shopping for clothes online. Chief executive Nick Robertson – who owns 14 per cent of the business – hailed the “phenomenal” results, but warned that the group is anticipating more conservative growth [...]
US merger for Towers Perrin, Watson Wyatt June 29, 2009 CONSULTING firms Towers Perrin Forster & Crosby and Watson Wyatt Worldwide plan to merge in an all-stock deal valued at about $3.5bn (£2.1bn), as they hope to cut costs amid an economic slump that caused clients to curb discretionary spending. Under terms of the deal, announced yesterday, Watson Wyatt’s shareholders will get half of the [...]
Oils and banks lift the large caps but defensives slide June 29, 2009 THE FTSE 100 gained 1.3 per cent yesterday, boosted by strength in oil majors and banks, and reflecting early gains on Wall Street. The index closed 53.02 points higher at 4,294.03, recovering most of last week’s 1.5 per cent decline. “What is most impressive about today’s rally is the breadth of the buying. Most sectors [...]
Window dressing boosts US stocks June 29, 2009 US STOCKS rose yesterday as higher oil prices lifted shares of energy companies and fund managers snapped up this quarter’s winners to embellish their portfolios. Energy shares were a strong performer in the quarter, and a 3.4 per cent jump in the price of oil lifted them even further. Exxon Mobil was the Dow’s top [...]
JUSTICE IS DONE AS MADOFF GETS 150 YRS June 29, 2009 DISGRACED financier Bernie Madoff will die in jail after he was yesterday sentenced to 150 years in prison, the maximum punishment allowed for what the judge called “extraordinarily evil” crimes. US district attorney judge Denny Chin handed down the punishment to Madoff for perpetrating a $65bn (£40bn) investment fraud – Wall Street’s biggest and most [...]
