Shaftesbury sees income growth on West End sites May 25, 2011 LONDON landlord Shaftesbury yesterday posted a first-half rise in underlying net asset value and said it was confident of maintaining outperformance in its income, dividend and capital growth. In the six months to 31 March, the company posted a 5.3 per cent rise in underlying net asset value (NAV) per share to 436p, partly on [...]
Brewin hit by £6.1m compensation levy May 25, 2011 PROFIT GROWTH at financial services group Brewin Dolphin has been wiped out by a £6.1m charge paid to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) for the collapse of failed firm Keydata. The wealth manager saw its pretax profit decline by 21 per cent on last year to £12m in the six months to 27 March. [...]
Banks need clarity from regulators, not criticism May 25, 2011 DOES the governor of the Bank of England hate banks? You might think it is a rather sacrilegious question, but it is one that bankers themselves are asking, at the very highest levels. It is normal for there to be tensions between an industry and its regulators; indeed as the electricity industry showed in the [...]
New Caledonia Investments boss rocks the boat to bolster returns May 25, 2011 FOR a company with roots like Caledonia Investments, which traces its history in line with the Cayzer shipping empire, a shake-up is a rare thing. But for newly installed chief executive Will Wyatt (pictured), change is a necessity. Caledonia, founded in the 1920s, has struggled in recent times. In terms of total returns, investors have [...]
Retail investors warned over ETFs May 25, 2011 THE CHIEF of stockbroker Tullett Prebon yesterday warned retail investors against the use of some exchange traded funds (ETFs). Terry Smith said the rise of ETFs as a popular vehicle for investors had become “worse than I thought”. Writing on his blog, he added: “I suspect a lot of retail investors think that ETFs are [...]
JJB revival plan hit as its losses mount May 25, 2011 SPORTSWEAR chain JJB Sports yesterday warned that it will take as long as five years to turn round the business after it reported mounting losses. The full-year losses almost doubled to £181.4m. The retailer was saved from administration in March when it hammered out a company voluntary agreement with its landlords, closing up to 89 [...]
Legal action dogs Tate & Lyle May 25, 2011 TATE & Lyle (T&L) will announce its annual results tomorrow against the backdrop of a £100m legal dispute. The conglomerate is embroiled in a complex court case with London-based firm Whitefox Technologies. The two firms are suing each other in a spat that could cost the giant in excess of £100m if it loses. There [...]
Westfield on target but silent over European plans May 25, 2011 AUSTRALIAN mall operator Westfield Group reconfirmed its earnings forecasts yesterday despite the impact of a lower US dollar, but kept tight-lipped about reports of plans to expand in Europe. Westfield has already ventured into the UK with the opening of Westfield London in 2008 and Westfield Stratford City, which is expected to open later this [...]
FSA fines Bank of Scotland May 25, 2011 Bank of Scotland, owned by Lloyds Banking Group, has been slapped with a £3.5m fine from the Financial Services Authority (FSA) for failures in how it handled certain customer complaints. The FSA added it had also secured £17m in compensation for customers, following complaints about the company’s retail investment products. Between July 2007 and October [...]
Costain wins water contracts May 25, 2011 Construction and engineering firm Costain yesterday announced two major water contract extensions worth £100m. The firm is in a joint venture to upgrade and extend Sandon Dock sewage treatment works in Liverpool, and has a contract to design and build wastewater schemes for Severn Trent. Chief executive Andrew Wyllie said he was pleased with the [...]
