Next Fifteen sees writedown on embezzlement at PR firm Bite November 27, 2012 MARKETING group Next Fifteen wrote off almost £2m related to a fraud at the company’s PR firm Bite Communications yesterday. The alleged embezzlement, which the company said was down to a senior employee at Bite’s San Francisco office when it flagged the situation last month, is being investigated by the FBI. The announcement had sent [...]
St Ives resilient in headwinds November 27, 2012 Marketing and print group St Ives yesterday said it had seen a jump in operating profit year-on-year since the end of July, despite “broadly flat” revenues. The book publisher said it was making “good progress with our strategy to reposition the business [towards marketing] and offer an extended range of services”. It added that margins [...]
Apple fires mapping boss November 27, 2012 Apple has sacked the head of its maps division following the iPhone maker’s embarrassment over the service, which has been beset by problems. Richard Williamson was ousted by senior vice president Eddy Cue in a bid to regain trust in the division, Bloomberg reported yesterday. Apple changed the maps service on its iPad and iPhone [...]
Correction November 27, 2012 In our issue dated 27 November, we wrote that Diageo is believed to be considering moving its tax base to the UK. In fact, Diageo is currently a UK domiciled company.
Ofgem finds E.ON guilty of overcharging November 27, 2012 BRITAIN’S energy regulator yesterday ordered supplier E.ON UK to repay customers £1.4m for wrong charges it applied after they switched energy provider in 2008 and 2011. The energy supplier, one of the UK’s so-called big six, also agreed with regulator Ofgem to pay another 300,000 pounds into a consumer fund to help old people in [...]
Shares in Falkland Oil and Gas are hit by a miss at Scotia well November 27, 2012 FALKLAND Oil and Gas, which is engaged in a roller coaster ride to find oil in the disputed South Atlantic islands, lost almost half of its value yesterday when it announced the abandonment of a well following disappointing results. The statement wiped 49 per cent off Falkland’s volatile stock, sending its shares to an historic [...]
Record-breaking feats help Red Bull brand take flight November 27, 2012 IN the last two months, energy drinks brand Red Bull has raced into the headlines on more than one occassion. It has benefitted both from Felix Baumgartner’s stunning jump from the edge of space, and a winning Formula 1 team. But amid these record-breaking feats, what impact has this exposure had on the brand in [...]
Chemring admits 2012 has been extremely disapppointing year November 27, 2012 MILITARY equipment maker Chemring Group, which earlier this month issued its second profit warning in less than three months, said yesterday that its 2012 performance had been “extremely disappointing”. But its shares rose on relief that its year-end trading statement did not contain more nasty surprises. Chemring, which makes flares, and mechanisms used in ejector [...]
ConAgra seals $5bn Ralcorp deal after almost two years of talks November 27, 2012 LONG-TIME suitor ConAgra Foods finally sealed a deal to buy Ralcorp Holdings for $5bn (£3bn) to become the biggest private label food company in North America. Ralcorp shareholders will receive $90 per share in cash, a premium of 28.2 per cent to the stock’s Monday close, ConAgra said in a statement. ConAgra, the maker of [...]
Zambeef plans return to dividend November 27, 2012 Argicultural business Zambeef said yesterday it plans to reinstate its dividend, as its profits before tax rose 20 per cent to $12.7m (£7.9m). Revenues rose 23 per cent to $255.1m. Profits after tax were hit by a $9m tax liability that the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) is demanding, with a judgment on a pending appeal [...]
