Osborne backs Alexander on UK credit rating August 6, 2012 TREASURY secretary Danny Alexander yesterday played down the importance of the UK’s top-notch credit rating, which could be pressured as the government struggles to achieve its deficit cutting aims with the country stuck in recession. Chancellor George Osborne and his Lib Dem deputy Alexander stressed the need to support economic growth alongside reducing a hefty [...]
Knight Capital shares tank as it secures lifeline August 6, 2012 KNIGHT Capital said yesterday that a group of investors has rescued the firm in a $400m (£256.2m) deal that keeps the embattled leader in US equities market-making in business, but comes at a huge cost to existing shareholders. Chief executive Tom “TJ” Joyce said the new investors supported him and his management team, but it [...]
Best Buy mulls founder’s offer to take it over August 6, 2012 AMERICAN electronics retailer Best Buy may be taken private after founder and former chairman Richard Schulze made an offer to the company’s board valuing it at up to $9bn (£5.8bn) yesterday. Schulze’s offer to buy the 80 per cent of Best Buy he does not already own sent shares in the retailer up 17 per [...]
New chapter for publishing as Amazon Kindle overtakes print August 6, 2012 EBOOKS are outselling their printed counterparts at Britain’s largest bookseller Amazon for the first time, the web giant has revealed. Across Amazon’s UK operations, 114 Kindle ebooks have been sold for every 100 hardback or paperback editions this year. The figures also showed that ereaders are sparking a boom in total book sales, with Kindle [...]
HMV HIRES NEW FINANCE DIRECTOR August 6, 2012 HMV is poised to announce it has poached Carphone Warehouse executive Ian Kenyon to become its new finance director after David Wolffe stepped down from the embattled music entertainment chain. Kenyon was previously chief financial officer of Best Buy Europe before it was closed down in January. He has also held roles at Carpetright and [...]
Euro politicians fret as investor morale slumps August 6, 2012 EUROZONE leaders continued their public bickering yesterday after a survey showed investor sentiment across the single currency sinking for a fifth straight month. Concerns over the euro area’s debt crisis saw the latest Sentix index fall to a score of minus 30.3 in August, down from minus 29.6 in July, the German group revealed. The [...]
Manchester Utd fans target banks on float August 6, 2012 THE BANKS advising Manchester United on this week’s planned initial public offering (IPO) in New York have been sent over half a million letters from activist fans opposed to the listing. Commercial associates of the club are being targeted by supporters angry with the policies of United’s Glazer family owners. The Manchester United Supporters Trust [...]
UK office transaction volumes reach highest level since 2007 August 6, 2012 OVERSEAS investors have sent UK office transaction volumes soaring to their highest levels in five years, figures published yesterday show. The second quarter of 2012 saw the highest volume of office transactions since the third quarter of 2007 – led by a surge of foreign investors investing in London offices, Aberdeen Asset Management figures reveal. [...]
Bluewater set to get bigger August 6, 2012 THE BLUEWATER shopping centre in Kent is in line for an expansion, after Lend Lease said yesterday it has begun a consultation on the move, which the firm claims would create up to 1,500 new jobs. The Australian property firm hopes to extend the 1.6m square foot mall by around a fifth. The application for [...]
Heritage Oil to seek cash for Nigerian fields August 6, 2012 HERITAGE Oil, the British oil exploration firm led by former security adviser Tony Buckingham, yesterday announced a $370m (£237m) rights issue to fund its expansion into Nigeria. The company, which yesterday posted a $6.7m loss in its interim results, will use the capital raised from the rights issue to bolster the $850m purchase of a [...]
