Factory growth slows in Canada June 2, 2011 Canadian manufacturing slowed from April to May, a new purchasing managers’ index showed yesterday.
Metal prices help Johnson Matthey gain June 2, 2011 JOHNSON Matthey, the world’s largest supplier of catalytic converters, said annual profit rose on the back of higher vehicle sales and precious metal prices. However, the FTSE 100 company said it expected Japan’s earthquake to hit car production temporarily in the first half, even though this would likely be reversed by the second half. It [...]
Acquisition spree continues at HICL June 2, 2011 INFRASTRUCTURE investment company HICL Infrastructure yesterday paid £4.6m for a majority stake in the Brentwood Community Hospital private finance initiative (PFI) project, boosting its joint venture ownership of the project to 100 per cent. The project is a 32-year concession to design, build, finance and run a 50-bed hospital in Brentwood, Essex, and takes HICL’s [...]
Kan survives no-confidence vote June 2, 2011 Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan survived a no-confidence vote in parliament yesterday, but the unpopular leader will still struggle to break a policy deadlock given a split in his own party and a divided parliament. Opposition parties controlling parliament’s upper house have criticised his response to the deadly 11 March earthquake and tsunami and resulting [...]
Impax expects profit increase June 2, 2011 Asset management firm Impax, which focuses on the alternative energy, water treatment and waste management industries, yesterday said it expects revenue and profits to increase in the second half of the year as more investors put money in alternative clean energy following unrest in the Middle East and the Japanese nuclear crisis. Chief executive Ian [...]
NAV falls at McKay Securities June 2, 2011 Property development and investment company McKay Securities yesterday announced a drop of 4.7 per cent in its net asset value (NAV) over the last financial year despite an increase in the company’s real estate portfolio from £205.95m to £208.52m. Managing director Simon Perkins said the fall in NAV was largely due to a £5.9m one-off [...]
HOHN DONATES £1BN TO CHARITY June 2, 2011 ONE of London’s most successful hedge fund managers, Chris Hohn, has donated almost £1bn to charity over the past five years. Hohn, who runs The Children’s Investment Fund, donated a total of £42.7m to the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) in the year to August 2010. The CIFF funds projects to improve the lives of children living [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS June 2, 2011 Norton Rose Jon Harry is joining the law firm’s Paris office as a partner on 6 June. Harry led the corporate group of Hogan Lovells’ Paris office from 2006 to 2009, before becoming a corporate specialist practising in Paris, with expertise in cross-border mergers and acquisitions. Evolution Securities The investment bank has appointed Mark Wellesley-Wood [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS June 2, 2011 BMW Goldman Sachs rates the carmaker a conviction “buy” and has a target price of €120 (£106). The broker has raised its earnings forecasts by nine per cent ahead of consensus, and expects further sales rises. EADS RBS rates the defence corporation a “buy” and has raised its target price by €2 from €25 (£22.08) [...]
FTSE falls again as fears over economy continue June 2, 2011 BRITAIN’S top shares slid for a second day as worries over weak economic data drove investors from risky assets ahead of Friday’s US non-farm payroll numbers. The FTSE 100 closed down 80.69 points, or 1.4 per cent, at 5,847.92, with volume 93 per cent of its 90-day average. The index fell one per cent in [...]
