SWISS RE SEES $600M THAI FLOOD LOSS December 6, 2011 FLOODS that swept Thailand in November, killing more than 600 people and causing $8-11bn (£5.1-£7bn) of insured losses, will cost reinsurance giant Swiss Re $600m, it said yesterday. The floods hugely damaged factories, adding to the woes of Asian firms that moved production from Japan after the earthquake. Picture: REUTERS
Wolseley still wary despite lift in profits December 6, 2011 WOLSELEY, the world’s biggest building supplies company, posted a 16 per cent rise in first-quarter trading profits yesterday and warned it will remain vigilant on costs due to uncertainty over the outlook. The FTSE 100 company said underlying operating profit rose 16 per cent to £185m in the three months to the end of October, [...]
Showdown for UBS activists in High Court December 6, 2011 PROTESTERS who have taken over a disused UBS building in the City could be evicted as soon as today after a High Court judgement is handed down. Mr Justice Roth is due to rule this morning on the Occupy group’s challenge to the injunction obtained by Sun Street Properties, a subsidiary of the Swiss bank. [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: WHAT IS THE OUTLOOK FOR WOLSELEY IN TOUGH MARKETS? December 6, 2011 TONY SHEPARD | CHARLES STANLEY Over the last two years, Wolseley has done well to deleverage and reposition the Group. It is now more focused and with improving customer service it is looking to increase market share and and improve returns. Although Wolseley is operating in tough markets we expect it to make further progress. [...]
Shell boosted by shale gas find in China December 6, 2011 ROYAL Dutch Shell has found shale gas in China, a development that could cap imports in a market natural gas producers are hoping will drive demand. An official with Shell’s partner PetroChina, a unit of the country’s top energy group, state-owned CNPC, said drilling results from two wells Shell drilled had been positive. Shell has [...]
RWE’s €2.1bn share sale hampered by S&P’s credit warning to the Eurozone December 6, 2011 RWE’s share sale fell flat yesterday as investors held back amid the Standard & Poor’s warning of a credit rating cut to Eurozone countries. The German utility said it raised €2.1bn (£1.8bn) by selling 80.4m shares to institutional investors at €26 a piece – well below the €2.5bn it had hoped for when it announced [...]
CITY VIEWS: SHOULD THE GOVERNMENT BE DOING MORE TO ENCOURAGE COMPANIES TO HEADQUARTER IN THE UK? December 6, 2011 ALAN MEEK MACROBERTS “Yes, of course, if it would bring business to this country. I’m not an expert, but surely additional tax revenues can only be a good thing?” PETER LAWREY PLUS MARKETS “It definitely should – certainly for larger global companies – and not just by reducing tax, which seems to be its main [...]
Debt crisis to bring market pain in 2012 December 6, 2011 BOND and equity investors should brace themselves for another torrid year as the Eurozone debt crisis enters “a final phase”, two senior executives at City fund manager Fidelity warned yesterday. Stock markets will see another year of high volatility and falling prices as the current crisis of confidence in weak states’ debt escalates into a [...]
Icahn in hostile offer for metals December 6, 2011 BILLIONAIRE investor Carl Icahn went hostile with his $1.73bn (£1.1bn) bid to buy Commercial Metals yesterday, a day after the metals recycler rejected his buy-out attempt. Icahn, who owns about a 10 per cent stake in Commercial Metals, said he will start a tender offer and will require the support of at least 40 per cent [...]
Kraft axes 200 jobs at Cadbury December 6, 2011 UP TO 200 jobs will go at US food group Kraft’s Cadbury plants over the next year, as part of a reorganisation that will see the company split into two. The firm admitted yesterday that redeployments and voluntary redundancies would hit sites in Bournville, Chirk and Marlbrook from next March – but said it would also [...]
