Protesters aim to teach FSA about top pay January 9, 2012 PROTESTERS from Occupy London will today join politicians from across the party divide to give the City regulator a “teach out” on executive pay and bonuses. The group is due to hold the session in the area outside the headquarters of the Financial Services Authority in Canary Wharf this morning, coinciding with the RBS bonus [...]
ECB deposits reach a fresh record high January 9, 2012 BANKS are storing ever more cash in the European Central Bank’s (ECB) deposit facility, which hit another record high yesterday. Banks put away €464bn (£383bn) in the facility, which is regarded as a reasonable indication of their desire to horde cash as it means putting away money above and beyond the amount they must hold in [...]
Higher IMF contribution may prompt defeat in Commons January 9, 2012 PRIME Minister David Cameron would face a humiliating Commons defeat if he tries to boost Britain’s contribution to an IMF bailout fund for the Eurozone, backbench MPs expect. Chancellor George Osborne told parliament in October that the UK “will not be putting money into the bailout fund either directly or through the IMF” – yet [...]
Hungary starting bailout talks in attempt to soothe market worry January 9, 2012 TALKS between Hungary and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) began in Washington yesterday, according to Hungary’s economy ministry. The country hopes that a credit line from the IMF will not need to be called upon but will be seen by investors as a safety net preventing the country from defaulting on its debts. Yields on [...]
Germany may be in recession despite a wider trade surplus January 9, 2012 HIGHER exports have bolstered Germany’s trade balance, official data showed yesterday, widening the Eurozone heavyweight’s surplus. The positive economic news was short-lived, however, after separate data showed a decline in German industrial output — prompting some economists to state that the core Eurozone nation could already be in the midst of a double-dip recession. And [...]
Morrisons says its festive revenues gained slightly January 9, 2012 WM MORRISON said squeezed shoppers counted their pennies this Christmas, trading down on items like champagne for sparkling wine, as the supermarket chain reported a slowdown in like-for-like growth. Britain’s fourth-biggest supermarket said sales at stores open for at least a year rose 0.7 per cent, excluding fuel and VAT in the six weeks to [...]
December sales boost flattered by 2010’s snow January 9, 2012 HOPE for the British high street was boosted this morning by figures showing a sharp increase in retail sales for December, compared to the key Christmas period the previous year. Like-for-like retail sales were up 2.2 per cent, while total sales — which include newly developed shop floor space — jumped by 4.1 per cent. [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: WERE MORRISONS’ RESULTS IN LINE WITH EXPECTATIONS? January 9, 2012 PHILIP DORGAN | PANMURE GORDON Christmas trading was slightly below best expectations, although in line with the market. Morrison’s shares were fantastic performers in 2011 and, while we see no real downside, we expect others within the sector to pick up the baton in 2012. CLIVE BLACK | SHORE CAPITAL We deem such a performance [...]
BSkyB signs $15m tie-up with Zeebox January 9, 2012 BSKYB has acquired 10 per cent of social TV network Zeebox in a move that grants the broadcaster exclusive rights to use the two-month-old start-up’s technology in its own apps. While no sum was officially disclosed, Zeebox chief executive Ernesto Schmitt tweeted that BSkyB parted with more than $15m (£9.7m) in the deal. Co-created by [...]
Start-up founders extract a tidy sum January 9, 2012 AN interesting deal this. Industry sources put the price of BSkyB’s stake in Zeebox at a rich $15m (£9.7m), implying a valuation of $150m for a start-up that was launched just two months ago. Extrapolating a price tag mightn’t be entirely fair, because Sky is also buying the rights to integrate Zeebox’s technology into its [...]
