SHELL SEES SALE OF CANADIAN STAKE July 18, 2011 Royal Dutch Shell (led by Peter Voser, pictured) is preparing to sell off its C$16.2bn (£10.5bn) stake in a gas pipeline project in northern Canada, as well as other assets in the region. The Mackenzie pipeline project, has been under regulatory review for years and its fate has long been in doubt, despite winning formal [...]
Thomas Cook seals a new credit deal July 18, 2011 TRAVEL operator Thomas Cook yesterday announced that it had sealed an improved deal for its credit facility. The lending arrangement, comprising a £200m loan and an £850m credit facility that can be called upon if required, now runs until May 2014. Shares in Thomas Cook rose around four per cent when the London Stock Exchange [...]
Dixons hands Browett £1m despite big losses July 18, 2011 DIXONS chief executive John Browett was paid more than £1m in the last year despite the company being hit by tough trading in the electronics retailing market. His finance director Nicholas Cadbury, who is stepping down, was paid £564,000 including a cash bonus of £62,000. A chart in the report called Total Shareholder Return provided [...]
Debenhams in debt pile refinancing July 18, 2011 DEBENHAMS has refinanced its credit facility at reduced interest rates. Lenders for the department store chain’s £650m facility, made up of a £250m long term loan and £400m in revolving credit, have reduced the group’s cash interest rate by 0.50 per cent to four per cent. The lenders Barclays Capital, Lloyds Banking Group and Royal [...]
GKN snaps up Germany’s Stromag in £174m deal to boost land unit July 18, 2011 ENGINEERING giant GKN has secured a £174m deal to take over Germany’s Stromag, a leading manufacturer of clutches and brakes. The business is being bought from a private equity firm, a group of investors and management for a total of €164m (£146m) in cash and the transfer of €31m of Stromag’s debt, GKN announced yesterday. [...]
United Carpets in profit boost July 18, 2011 United Carpets yesterday reported an increase in profit for fiscal 2011, but said it remains cautious about the remainder of the year. In preliminary results for the year to 31 March, the company said its profit before tax increased 13.2 per cent to £1.24m from £1.1m last year. Excluding exceptional items, pre-tax profit was £1.48m, [...]
Fenner revenues on the rise July 18, 2011 Engineering group Fenner said today that third-quarter revenue will be up on last year after seeing strong demand from the coal sector. The group, based in Hessle near Hull, said a recovery in industrial markets had helped it to grow its conveyor belting and advanced engineered products divisions. Earlier this month it announced that its [...]
SThree to pay special dividend July 18, 2011 Recruiter SThree reported a 21 per cent rise in first-half profit yesterday and said it would pay a special dividend after seeing a recovery across its markets. SThree, which finds jobs for IT professionals in the finance, energy and healthcare sectors in Britain, Europe and Asia, posted a gross profit of £90m for the six [...]
Fall in London house supply July 18, 2011 A DROUGHT of available residential property in London is propping up prices and rents, a survey in the capital revealed yesterday. June’s stock for sale was down 20 per cent on the previous year, while there was a 30 per cent fall in available rental properties, according to estate agents Douglas & Gordon. “The shortage [...]
When it makes sense for the Top Dog to pitch July 18, 2011 FEW need reminding how treacherous current conditions in Europe’s equity markets are. Russia’s Valinor recently became the 25th pulled listing in Europe, Middle East and Africa so far this year and a 15 per cent downwards repricing of the Spanish bank Bankia yesterday underlined the fragility of investor appetite for new issues. So it is [...]
