Sage of Omaha rescues Bank of America August 25, 2011 WARREN Buffett thinks he should pay more tax, but failing that he’ll find other ways of using his money to help the US government. Yesterday, he was doing his bit by investing $5bn in Bank of America, whose share price has been battered by fears the company lacks the sufficient capital to fight or settle [...]
Centamin Egypt appoints RBC August 25, 2011 RBC Capital Markets has won its second new mandate this week after being appointed as joint broker to gold producer Centamin Egypt. The appointment, announced yesterday by the FTSE-listed company, brings the total new mandates that RBC has won since start of 2011 to 13. It has replaced Morgan Stanley as joint broker to African Barrick [...]
Treasury settles JP Morgan case August 25, 2011 US bank JP Morgan has paid $88.3m (£53.6m) to settle a case with the US Treasury department for making financial transactions in violation of US international sanctions. JP Morgan allowed transactions such as wire transfers to countries such as Cuba and Iran through its affiliate banks over five years from 2005 to 2011, the Treasury [...]
TPG snaps up stake in Saxo August 25, 2011 ONE of the founders of Saxo Bank pledged to continue its push for growth after a private equity house bought a 30 per cent stake in the group from American and Portuguese investors. Lars Seier Christensen told City A.M. there had been several private equity approaches over the last year for Copenhagen-based Saxo, a global [...]
Diageo lifted by emerging market boost August 25, 2011 DRINKS giant Diageo yesterday attributed a rise in earnings to the growing number of middle class drinkers in emerging markets. The company said Scotch whisky sales were soaring in Africa and Asia helping to offset overall weakness in Europe. Operating profit in the full year jumped by five per cent to £2.8bn while earnings per [...]
Gloomiest high street since February 2009, claims CBI August 25, 2011 A QUIET August on the high street has seen retailers slump to the gloomiest they have been since February 2009, a leading survey revealed yesterday. Retail sales volumes this month were even lower than in August 2010, having fallen at the fastest pace for over a year. While 31 per cent of respondents reported a [...]
Coalition on course to miss own targets as net migration surges August 25, 2011 NET migration to the UK has risen by 21 per cent since last year, according to the Office for National Statistics. Around 239,000 more people arrived in the country than left it during 2010. The number of people leaving the country or being removed in the three months to August fell to the lowest level [...]
Co-op hit by dire trading environment August 25, 2011 THE chief executive of the Co-operative Group yesterday warned current trading conditions are the worst for 40 years as the company’s half year profits took a hit. The group reported a 12 per cent drop in underlying profits to £230.8m for the six months to 2 July. Food sales were down to £3.7bn from £3.9bn [...]
Wilkinson earnings drop as shoppers rein in spending August 25, 2011 VALUE retailer Wilkinson admitted its profit figures were “disappointing” as shoppers saw their disposable income cut over the last year. However, the chain, one of Britain’s largest family-run firms, said yesterday it had experienced the best Christmas week in its history. Turnover hit £1.559bn for the 12 months to January this year, up slightly from [...]
Reckitt probing Nurofen mix-up August 25, 2011 RECKITT Benckiser and AstraZeneca said they are investigating the cause of a mix-up that led to powerful anti-psychotic drugs ending up on pharmacy shelves in Nurofen Plus packaging. Reckitt, which makes Nurofen, said consumers in south London should check drugs for gold and black packaging, which could mean the pills inside are actually Seroquel XL, [...]
