Output slump rocks African Barrick Gold January 17, 2013 LONDON-listed gold miner African Barrick Gold (ABG) yesterday posted a nine per cent drop in annual production, just weeks after takeover talks with a Chinese gold firm collapsed. Over the full year, gold production came in at 626,212 ounces, nine per cent lower than 2011. Gold sales for the African-focused miner also slumped 13 per [...]
Premier Oil increases spending as it eyes jump in production January 17, 2013 BRITISH oil producer Premier Oil expects a significant jump in production this year, as it increases its spending to $1.1bn (£688m). Output ramped up by 43 per cent last year as Premier reported average production of 57,000 barrels of oil a day, up from 40,400 barrels a day in 2011. Production guidance for this year [...]
Volvo details dramatic cost cuts in bid to be profitable by 2014 January 17, 2013 SWEDISH car maker Volvo, owned by Chinese group Geely, detailed dramatic cost cuts yesterday as part of its bid to become profitable again within the next two years. Chief executive Hakan Samuelsson, said the firm would need to slash costs by over 1bn Swedish kronor (£95.6m) to enable it to break even. Earlier this month, [...]
Afferro in talks with Indian energy firm January 17, 2013 AFRICAN-focused Afferro Mining yesterday confirmed it was still in active talks regarding a potential takeover offer with several buyers, including with New Delhi-based Jindal Steel and Power Limited. The AIM-listed miner said it had received approaches from a number of interested parties, but stressed that there was no certainty that an offer would be forthcoming, [...]
Minority partner looks to block sale of Canadian diamond mine January 17, 2013 HARRY Winston Diamond’s plan to buy BHP Billiton’s Ekati diamond operations in Northern Canada hit a snag yesterday, with a minority partner filing a lawsuit to try to block the deal. C Fipke Holdings, which has a right of first refusal on the sale, is alleging that BHP Billiton failed to comply with their joint [...]
Petropavlovsk ups gold goal January 17, 2013 PETROPAVLOVSK’S shares soared yesterday as the Russian gold miner lifted its production targets and announced a potential $238m (£149m) investment in subsidiary IRC by new shareholders. The investment, from General Nice Development and Minmetals Cheerglory, will be used to fund production growth. The FTSE 250 miner posted a 13 per cent year-on-year increase in gold [...]
Stobart Group shares skid after haulage firm warns on profits January 17, 2013 STOBART Group’s shares fell by almost three per cent yesterday after the FTSE 250-listed lorry firm warned it would fall short of profit forecasts and announced the closure of its chilled business. The firm said its operating performance for the year will be slightly below market expectations, due to slower than hoped progress on its [...]
City Moves for 18 January 2013 | Who’s switching jobs January 17, 2013 Carmignac Gestion Pierre Verlé has been appointed as a credit analyst within the asset management firm’s fixed income team. Before joining Carmignac, he was co-manager of the distressed debt fund at Butler Investment Managers in London. Verlé has also previously worked as an analyst at Morgan Stanley. Espirito Santo Investment Bank The investment bank has [...]
Best of the Brokers January 17, 2013 BARRATT DEVELOPMENTS UBS has raised its target price on the housebuilder from 210p to 250p and maintained its “buy” recommendation after first half results in line with expectations. The broker expects further margin improvements as profit and loss contributions from recent land acquisitions increases, and expects the group to be debt free by 2015. UBS [...]
FTSE hits another 4.5 year peak as afternoon session scares off bears January 17, 2013 BRITAIN’S blue-chip shares reversed early losses to hit a four and a half year high yesterday after several big fallers bounced back to expunge sellers from the market. Banks gained 0.9 and are now up around 2.5 per cent since the previous session’s lows, boosted by forecast-beating earnings from JP Morgan Chase and Goldman Sachs [...]
