TUI moving closer to sale of stake in Hapag-Lloyd February 12, 2012 GERMAN travel group TUI looks set to agree the sale of its stake in container shipping firm Hapag-Lloyd to majority shareholder the Albert Ballin consortium this week. A spokesman for the finance authority for the city state of Hamburg, part of the Albert Ballin consortium, said it was quite possible that a deal would be [...]
Pub and restaurant visits increase but Britons continue to rein in spending February 12, 2012 BRITONS are starting to make more frequent trips to bars, restaurants and clubs after two years of belt-tightening, in a sign that the leisure sector may be able to capitalise on “austerity fatigue”. Pub and bar visits have increased by 2.2 per cent compared to last year, with the average UK consumer going to the [...]
Pioneering BofA boss dies February 12, 2012 Tom Storrs, who set a small North Carolina bank on the path to becoming one of the largest US financial institutions, died on Friday at age 93. Storrs was chairman and chief executive officer of North Carolina National Bank from 1974 to 1983, leading the company through volatile economic times and the first wave of [...]
Apple seeks Samsung injunction February 12, 2012 Apple has asked a California court to issue a preliminary injunction to block sales of Samsung’s new Galaxy Nexus smartphone, alleging the device infringes four Apple patents. The move marks another escalation of the legal battle between the world’s top two sellers of smartphones, with Apple re-focusing its arguments to account for Samsung’s rising position [...]
Cracks could cost Airbus €100m February 12, 2012 Dealing with the wing cracks found in Airbus A380 superjumbos could cost the European plane maker up to €100m (£83.6m), a German magazine reported. Checking and repairing the wings of the 69 aircraft already in service could cost about €70m, weekly Der Spiegel said yesterday, citing unidentified industry experts and people at Airbus.
MERYL STREEP AND THE ARTIST TRIUMPH AT BAFTA AWARDS February 12, 2012 SILENT film The Artist was the big winner at last night’s 56th annual Bafta awards, taking home seven of the 12 gongs it was nominated for, including best film. Its leading man Jean Dujardin (above left with the film’s producer Thomas Langmann, centre) was named best actor at the ceremony, which was held at London’s [...]
Cable under fire over lost Eurofighter deal February 12, 2012 BUSINESS Secretary Vince Cable has come under fire for not lobbying hard enough to save the sale of BAE Systems’ Eurofighter jets to India. Fylde MP Mark Menzies said he had tabled questions to the Department of Business over its backing of the bid. BAE thought it had secured a contract to part assemble the [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS February 12, 2012 The Salamanca Group Jeremy Wrathall has been appointed as managing director of Salamanca Resources, the recently formed division of the group that will focus on the metals and mining sector. He joins Salamanca from Renaissance Capital, where he was head of investment banking for the firm’s London operation and had responsibility for metals and mining, [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS February 12, 2012 DIAGEO Nomura raises its price target from 1,470p to 1,520p, and kept its rating as “neutral” after the world’s biggest spirits group posted a seven per cent rise in first-half operating profits last week to £1.87bn. Nomura said top and bottom line growth was marginally better than expected and raised its target price to reflect [...]
WALL STREET WEEK AHEAD February 12, 2012 DESPITE a mediocre earnings season and signs of an overbought market, Wall Street bulls are likely to remain in control this week. So far in this earnings season, 352 companies in the S&P 500 have reported results, of which only 63 percent have beaten Wall Street estimates. This compares to a beat rate of about [...]
