BG Group and Petrobras find fuel in Brazil February 16, 2011 UK OIL explorer BG Group and Brazilian state-owned firm Petrobras announced a successful oil find off the coast of Rio de Janeiro state, the companies said yesterday. BG, which holds a 25 per cent stake in the oil field, and Petrobras, with a 65 per cent holding, said they will now start evaluting the size [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: WERE YOU IMPRESSED BY BHP BILLITON’S RESULTS? February 16, 2011 DAMIEN HACKETT | CANACCORD GENUITY BHP has particularly impressed me with its confidence in extending the share buyback. This is a firm that doesn’t need to put padding round its balance sheet. NIK STANOJEVIC | BREWIN DOLPHIN It was a bit mixed. This is a company that makes phenomenal profits, but some were expecting more [...]
Helical Bar promises purchases February 16, 2011 Property development company Helical Bar hopes to continue buying up real estate this year after completing 22 new lettings and 11 renewals in the four months to the end of January, after completing a £29m share placing in December. “Life is far from dull at Helical and our continued focus is to dispose of the [...]
BAE buys $300m biotech firm February 16, 2011 BAE Systems completed its purchase of technology firm L-1 Intelligence Services Group yesterday for around $300m (£187m) in cash. The acquisition, first announced in September, will beef up BAE’s biometrics business, which includes fingerprint technology and identity cards. US firm L-1 will use the proceeds to pay down debts.
Woolwich Crossrail gets funding February 16, 2011 Work on Woolwich Crossrail station is finally set to go ahead after housing developer Berkeley struck a £100m deal with Transport for London and the government. Berkeley will fund construction of the empty shell of the station with an expected completion date in 2013, though Crossrail and its partners have not yet secured funding to [...]
Heineken sees lift as cost cuts pay off February 16, 2011 HEINEKEN, the world’s third-largest brewer, beat full-year earnings forecasts as cost cuts in Europe and savings from a large Mexican acquisition more than offset lower beer sales, lifting its shares. The group, whose main brands are Heineken and Amstel, which are Europe’s number one and three beers, said it expected drinkers in Latin America, Asia [...]
Game Group looks online to stem the tide of falling sales February 16, 2011 THE new chief of video games chain Game said yesterday his strategy to cope with the trend away from buying physical games would be to concentrate on online sales. Ian Shepherd said he plans a “step change in our online revenues”. However he admitted that a large chunk of the £15m cost savings the group [...]
Greencore makes Williams CFO February 16, 2011 IRISH food group Greencore has named Alan Williams as its new chief financial officer. The 41-year-old will serve as executive director and chief financial officer from 7 March, replacing Geoff Doherty who left the position last year. Williams moves from the Cadbury Group where he was the global corporate finance director. He is an associate [...]
Thorntons in profit warning as sales falter February 16, 2011 THORNTONS issued a profit warning yesterday, becoming the latest retailer to flag a worsening consumer environment and announce plans to close stores as spending habits change. The chocolatier, which has 371 owned stores and 229 franchise outlets, said profit before tax and one-off items fell 8.5 per cent to £8.3m in the 28 weeks to [...]
OVERSEAS BOOST FOR ABERCROMBIE & FITCH February 16, 2011 US retailer Abercrombie & Fitch’s profit jumped 95 per cent – fuelled by international sales. In the fourth quarter, sales abroad rose 61 per cent, while on the domestic front they increased 16 per cent. Its profit for the quarter was $92.6m (£57.7m). The company, which specialises in teen fashion, has been improving market share.
