Publicis expects Olympic boom April 19, 2012 Publicis, the world’s third-largest advertising group, yesterday reported a growth of 13 per cent in first quarter sales but predicted a slower second quarter as clients shift their advertising budgets to coincide with the London Olympics and US presidential election. Organic growth in the first quarter was 4.1 per cent, while Publicis chief executive, Maurice [...]
ITV to offer adverts with Shazam April 19, 2012 ITV has signed a deal which will see it become the exclusive UK distributor of Shazam-enabled TV advertising. Viewers who have the popular music-finding app on their smartphone will be able to use it to interact with Shazam-enabled adverts to enter competitions, gain product information or download free music. Shazam for TV has been successful [...]
Ladbrokes gallops to profit rise April 19, 2012 Ladbrokes’ shares jumped almost seven per cent yesterday as the bookmaker posted a 3.9 per cent profits rise to £50.4m in its first quarter. The London-listed company grew revenues 8.9 per cent, boosted by favourable results at the recent Cheltenham horse racing festival. Ladbrokes pointed to its digital division, where revenues increased by 5.9 per [...]
Debenhams in Jubilee mood April 19, 2012 DEBENHAMS chief executive Michael Sharp said the retailer would benefit from the “feel good” factor the Jubilee weekend would bring but remained cautious of the effect of the Olympics on the retailer, as it reported a rise in profits. “I know, because it comes along every four years, that European football distracts spending into televisions, [...]
Persimmon says government scheme is boosting enquiries April 19, 2012 PERSIMMON yesterday said it enjoyed a strong start to the year, with the government’s NewBuy scheme helping boost demand during the spring selling season. The housebuilder, whose brands include Charles Church and Westbury, said it continued to outperform, with visitor levels to its sites over the first 15 weeks of 2012 up 10 per cent [...]
ANALYST VIEWS HOW DOES PERSIMMON COMPARE TO ITS PEERS IN THE SECTOR? April 19, 2012 CHARLIE CAMPBELL LIBERUM A positive trading update from Persimmon, saying that its private sales rates (per site) are up 20 per cent in the year to date, compared to a 22 per cent rise at the end of February, which is helpful for the sector, but NewBuy appears to have got off to a slow [...]
New markets push SABMiller revenues up April 19, 2012 PERONI beer sales helped SABMiller’s volumes grow eight per cent in the UK, offsetting a one per cent decline across Europe. The brewing giant behind Miller Lite and Grolsch grew revenues seven per cent in the year to 31 March, boosted by strong performances in emerging markets. Lager sales in Latin America increased by eight [...]
Anglo buoyed by copper lift April 19, 2012 MINER Anglo American posted a jump in quarterly production of iron ore and copper yesterday. Iron ore production, a key plank of the miner’s growth strategy, was up 17 per cent to 11.7m tonnes in the three months to the end of March, compared with the same quarter last year when heavy rains in the [...]
International Power revenues grow on emerging markets April 19, 2012 INTERNATIONAL Power yesterday said sales in the three months to the end of March rose five per cent helped by a strong performance in emerging markets, putting it on track for further growth this year. Sales for the quarter to 31 March rose to €4.3bn (€3.5bn) the company said. A slight drop in North America, [...]
Argentina eyes up more Repsol businesses as criticism mounts April 19, 2012 ARGENTINA wants to take an even bigger chunk of Repsol YPF’s operations in the country including its gas arm, it revealed yesterday in an official decree. As the World Bank threw its weight behind growing global criticism of the renationalisation plans, the government said it aims to use its self-declared powers to seize Repsol YPF [...]
