SSE on track for payout rise July 26, 2012 SSE said yesterday it was on track for a full-year dividend increase of at least two per cent more than retail price inflation (RPI) for 2012-2013 and above-RPI inflation dividend increases from 2013-2014 onwards. The utility also saw a steep drop in output from its gas and coal-fired power plants, with 43 per cent less [...]
Elgin leak drags down BG Group July 26, 2012 GAS trading at energy company BG Group has been hit by a downgrade of its US shale assets and falling European production as a result of a gas leak at Total’s North Sea Elgin facility earlier this year, BG Group said yesterday. The US asset downgrade and production drop in Europe were partly offset by [...]
Investments help British Gas owner Centrica beat forecasts July 26, 2012 UTILITY group Centrica, which owns the British Gas brand, said yesterday it was reaping the benefits of recent investments in infrastructure as it reported a rise in first-half earnings which beat market forecasts. Profits were boosted by new investments that increased production capacities, Centrica said, one day after it confirmed a £1.4bn investment in the [...]
GU KAILAI CHARGED WITH HEYWOOD MURDER July 26, 2012 CHINA will try Gu Kailai (pictured), the wife of ousted Politburo member Bo Xilai, on charges of allegedly murdering British businessman Neil Heywood, state media said yesterday in the latest turn in a scandal that has rocked the government in Beijing and could bring Gu the death penalty. She will face trial in eastern China.
Wealthy clients boost profits at St James’s Place July 26, 2012 WEALTH manager St James’s Place yesterday beat expectations as it announced a 20 per cent jump in first half profits to £220.5m. Analysts had thought sales would struggle as clients feared economic uncertainity in the Eurozone and kept their funds close to hand. But instead St James’s said that new business hit £353.9m in the [...]
Arbuthnot bucks trend as new structure defies banking slump July 26, 2012 ARBUTHNOT reported pre-tax profit of £10.8m for the half year, up from £200,000 a year ago, thanks in part to the rapid growth of Secure Trust, the retail banking arm that it floated on Aim in November. Secure Trust, which remains 75 per cent owned by Arbuthnot, boasted its own pre-tax profit of £12.5m as [...]
Note of caution for De La Rue July 26, 2012 MONEY printer De La Rue said orders in the last three months have been lower than expected, with an order book broadly flat on a year ago. The banknote maker added that it has “a number of important opportunities in the pipeline that are yet to be confirmed for production in the current financial year”. [...]
Investec hurt by rand’s fall July 26, 2012 BANKING group Investec said yesterday it is trading in line with last year, though the falling South African rand has hampered its progress. The firm said its operations in South Africa were doing well on a constant currency basis – but the 17 per cent fall of the rand over the last year has impacted [...]
Travis Perkins profits washed out by weather July 26, 2012 BUILDERS’ MERCHANT Travis Perkins blamed the unseasonably wet weather for stalling construction activity in the first half of the year and wiping £10m off profits. The company, which owns brands such as City Plumbing and Tile Giant, said revenues fell 0.7 per cent to £2.4bn on a like-for-like basis, with “exceptional” bad weather impacting its [...]
Capital Shopping Centres suffers as its rival Shaftesbury prospers July 26, 2012 CAPITAL Shopping Centres, Britain’s largest shopping centre owner, has suffered a drop in rental income in the first half of 2012 as it struggled to re-let shops following a string of retail failures earlier this year. The owner of malls including the Trafford Centre in Manchester and Lakeside in Essex, said like-for-like net rental income [...]
