Car armour helps QinetiQ trump forecasts May 26, 2011 BRITISH defence technology company QinetiQ reported a better-than-expected full-year operating profit, driven by a strong performance from its global products unit, and said it would resume paying dividends. QinetiQ, which makes high-tech military equipment such as bomb disposal robots and sniper detectors, said yesterday underlying operating profit rose 21 per cent to £145.4m in the [...]
Ricoh to cut 10,000 jobs May 26, 2011 COPIER and printer maker Ricoh will cut nearly 10 per cent of its staff to try to boost profits, a move that shows underperforming Japanese companies are stepping up efforts to compete with global rivals. Ricoh said yesterday the restructuring included slashing 10,000 jobs from its global workforce of 109,000, cutting unprofitable products and consolidating [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS May 26, 2011 JP Morgan Asset Management Professor Paul Sweeting has been appointed as European head of the Strategic Investment Advisory Group for JP Morgan Asset Management. Based in London, Sweeting will advise the firm’s European institutional clients on asset allocation, risk management and investment strategies. Sweeting previously held positions at Munich Reinsurance Company and Fidelity Investments International. [...]
ALL CHANGE AT LLOYD’S AS IT RINGS 25 YEARS May 26, 2011 IT MAY seem like only yesterday for many City veterans, but today marks 25 years since the first managing agents moved into the landmark Lloyd’s building on Lime Street. So happy anniversary to the insurance giant, which still shows traces of more than 300 years of Lloyd’s history, such as the famous Lutine Bell, which [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS May 26, 2011 C&C Citi rates the drinks company a “hold” and has raised its target price to €3.85 (236p), from €3.50. The broker thinks C&C will struggle to grow its profit in 2012, with concerns about consumer sentiment in Ireland and Scotland in particular. Citi also thinks that cider’s young demographic means brand loyalty is less, and [...]
Strong miners give FTSE a boost May 26, 2011 STRENGTH in heavyweight mining stocks helped Britain’s top share index edge higher yesterday, countering slippage by banks on Eurozone debt concerns. At the close, the FTSE 100 was up 10.9 points, or 0.2 per cent at 5,880.99, well below a morning spike above the psychologically important 5,900 level to 5,910.77. “The overall impression … is [...]
Choppy US trading gives gains May 26, 2011 US stocks rose for a second day yesterday in a choppy session, with technology and consumer discretionary stocks leading the way after upbeat earnings. Sellers crowded around the S&P 500’s 50-day moving average for a third day. The level, now just above 1,328, is gaining strength as technical resistance and could prevent any rebound in [...]
Messi and Barca can give United more nightmares May 26, 2011 BARCELONA vs MANCHESTER UNITED TOMORROW – 7.45PM ITV 1 THERE is no doubt that this current Barcelona side has the potential to be one of the best, if not the best, club teams of all time. They have just won their third straight La Liga title and their fifth in the last seven campaigns. Pep [...]
IN-RUNNING TRADING HINTS May 26, 2011 Neutrals would have struggled to handpick two better contestants for this season’s Champions League final. As kings of their respective castles in Spain and England, the meeting between Barcelona and Man United could have the makings of a classic and it will give in-play traders plenty to ponder. At Wembley, pretty much United’s second home, [...]
Epsom’s French fancy May 26, 2011 WITH just over a week to go until the Investec Derby, racing’s good, bad and ugly gathered on Epsom Downs yesterday morning for the racecourse’s annual ‘Breakfast with the Stars’. The event offers up the opportunity for any horse entered in the world’s most famous race to exercise on the track and sample its undulations, [...]
