ITV snaps up Channel TV as it consolidates its brand October 18, 2011 ITV yesterday snapped up Channel Islands broadcaster Channel Television in a further consolidation of its broadcasting franchise. The deal for the small broadcaster means Northern Ireland-based UTV and Scotland’s STV are the only other holders of the 15 licences to broadcast on channel 3. The terms of the deal, which is subject to regulatory approval, [...]
DREAMING OF A PLENTIFUL CHRISTMAS October 18, 2011 TWO thirds of Britons are planning to spend more or the same on Christmas as last year, according to the HSBC Christmas Survey. On average, Brits are planning to spend £378 on the holiday, with £183 of that going on food, drink and entertainment. In a positive sign for retailers, the 22 per cent who plan to spend [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS October 18, 2011 Cushman & Wakefield The global property consultant has appointed Michael Lindsay as a partner and head of its EMEA corporate finance team in London. Lindsay was formerly a partner and UK head of corporate finance at KPMG, and director in Citigroup’s real estate and lodging investment banking team. Signia Wealth Etienne de Merlis has been appointed [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS October 18, 2011 LAMPRELL Investec said its target price of 393p is “under review” after the engineer firmed up an order to build two jackup oil rigs for Abu Dhabi’s National Drilling Company. Investec believes the deal will renew investor confidence in the stock. SARANTEL Merchant Securities rates the antennae manufacturer as “hold” maintaining its target price of [...]
FTSE down as growth worries hit October 18, 2011 BRITAIN’S leading share index ended lower yesterday as nervous investors retreated from riskier assets, forcing the FTSE 100 below a significant technical level as global growth concerns returned to haunt the market. The blue-chip index fell 26.35 points, or 0.5 per cent, to 5,410.35 — below the 5,450 level it has managed to close above [...]
Wall St rallies on Europe but Apple disappoints after hours October 18, 2011 US stocks surged late in trading yesterday as buyers latched onto another report of agreements to strengthen the euro zone’s rescue fund to bid up stocks aggressively. All three major indexes rose sharply after the Guardian newspaper said France and Germany will increase the euro zone’s rescue fund to €2 trillion as part of a [...]
Xstrata hit by South African mining strike October 18, 2011 ANGLO-SWISS miner Xstrata has warned that its South African coal operations were “significantly impacted” by a strike over an employee share ownership programme, but said that customer deliveries had not yet been affected. Thousands of workers belonging to the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) have walked off the job since Sunday, the union said, demanding [...]
WPP boss looks to mobile future for the ad industry October 18, 2011 SIR Martin Sorrell yesterday laid out his vision for the future of the advertising industry, stressing the importance of social media and the shift to emerging markets. He also said mobile advertising is an increasingly vital part of the industry, with the number of smartphones expected to increase to 2bn in the next five years. However, WPP’s [...]
Clarity says it may receive new bid soon October 18, 2011 CLARITY Commerce yesterday said it is in talks with a number of suitors and expects to receive a better offer than the one tabled by Jon Moulton’s Enigmatic Investments. The Clarity board reiterated its recommendation to shareholders to reject the Enigmatic bid, which it says undervalues the company and its prospects. It said: “The board is [...]
Air France-KLM replaces its chief exec October 18, 2011 AIR FRANCE-KLM ousted its chief executive yesterday and recalled the chief architects of the Franco-Dutch merger with a brief to eradicate losses while preparing for an anointed successor. Europe’s largest airline by revenues, which has fallen behind peers due to a cocktail of costs, debts and competition, said after board talks that recovery and improving performance [...]
