East coast factories bounce back in positive signal for US recovery October 20, 2011 FACTORY activity in the US mid-Atlantic region rebounded in October and the number of Americans claiming new jobless benefits fell last week, fresh signs that the economy was likely to duck a new recession. Yet optimism over the economy was tempered by other data yesterday showing a drop in sales of previously owned homes last [...]
CITY VIEWS: IS IT TIME FOR THE PROTESTORS TO MOVE ON OR ARE THEY RIGHT TO DIG IN FOR THE LONG HAUL? October 20, 2011 JAMES SCHNEIDER | IBM “Socialism is stealing; the protestors should move on, it is unfair to the entire community. They don’t understand who is behind what they represent and they are attacking the wrong people.” MARK GREENLESS | LOCKTON “The protestors definitely need to move on, it is unfair to expect the church to close [...]
Blackstone in losses shock October 20, 2011 PRIVATE equity giant Blackstone has shocked investors with the scale of its losses after market turmoil hit the value of its portfolio firms. The American buyout group also said it had been hit by the Eurozone debt crisis and weak Western economies as it posted a third quarter economic net loss – the basic measure [...]
Chi-X and BATS cleared to create Europe’s top exchange October 20, 2011 EQUITY trading platform BATS Global Markets was given the green light to buy rival Chi-X Europe by the competition watchdog yesterday, clearing a key hurdle to creating the biggest stock exchange in Europe. The Competition Commission provisionally approved the plan for BATS, the small European arm of America’s second-biggest exchange, to buy Chi-X, Europe’s far [...]
KKR out of contention as buyout groups circle Axa Private Equity October 20, 2011 BUYOUT group Kohlberg Kravis Roberts has dropped out of the bidding process for Axa Private Equity. Canadian asset manger Onex, Canadian pension fund Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and sovereign wealth fund the Government of Singapore Investment Corp (GIC) remain in contention after the deadline for first-round bids passed earlier this month. Last [...]
ADOBOLI CASE IS SENT TO CROWN COURT October 20, 2011 THE CASE of “rogue” UBS trader Kweku Adoboli was sent to Southwark Crown Court yesterday. Adoboli, who is accused of a $2.3bn (£1.5bn) fraud, was remanded in custody at City of London Magistrates and will next appear for a plea and case management hearing on November 22. Adoboli, who has been sacked as a director [...]
The set-top box maker is cheap but supply chain fragility makes it risky October 20, 2011 It’s not been a great year for Pace. Yesterday marked its third profit warning. The most recent two have been down to unforeseeable events – the Japanese earthquake, which hit tech companies across the globe and now the Thai floods. However, it shows just how brittle Pace can be when faced with supply chain issues. [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS October 20, 2011 Sovereign Capital The UK private equity buy and build specialist has appointed Rob King as investment manager to execute its buy and build growth strategy. Prior to joining Sovereign, King spent four years in the investment banking division of Rothschild, working on private equity-backed and plc mid-market deals across sectors including business services and healthcare. [...]
Axed Olympus boss fears for his safety October 20, 2011 The British chief executive axed from scandal-hit Olympus said yesterday he may seek police protection after passing “new information” to fraud investigators. Japanese giant Olympus has come under pressure from its biggest shareholders to explain hundreds of millions of dollars in controversial payments brought to light by former boss Michael Woodford. The whistle-blower has written [...]
Dutch company beats UK firms to rail tender October 20, 2011 THE Dutch state rail operator has been awarded a contract to run the Greater Anglia rail franchise, meaning that Stagecoach and the Go-Ahead Group will miss out on the lucrative tender. Abellio Great Anglia, a unit of Nederlandse Spoorwegen, will run the franchise across parts of Essex, Norfolk, Cambridgeshire and Sussex, including many of the [...]
