Beazley profit quadruples February 7, 2013 SPECIALIST insurer Beazley yesterday celebrated a 300 per cent rise in year-end profits to $251m (£160m) after a reduction in worldwide catastrophes. The only major payout at the Lloyd’s of London business was a $90m net loss from superstorm Sandy, which hit North America last October. Beazley’s strong position in the event insurance business means [...]
KKR cash pile rises on deals February 7, 2013 PRIVATE equity giant KKR said the fourth quarter of last year was its strongest yet as a publicly listed firm, as exits from private equity investments delivered a record amount of cash for itself and its investors. KKR said economic net income for the fourth quarter, a measure of private equity profitability, came in at [...]
Icap business back on track February 7, 2013 ICAP, the world’s largest inter-dealer broker, yesterday reported a turnaround in fortunes for January, reversing torrid trading activity late last year. The company, led by chief executive Michael Spencer, said activity had improved “across the business,” as numbers showed a 17 per cent increase in electronic broking volumes. It comes on the back of a [...]
Administrators to HMV to close first 66 stores February 7, 2013 HMV, the high street’s last major music retailer, is to close a third of its stores and cut 930 jobs across the country, administrators confirmed yesterday. Deloitte said the closure of 66 lossmaking stores, including four in London, will take place over the next two months in a move that will leave the embattled retailer [...]
Music tipping point heralded February 7, 2013 THE BRITISH music industry trade body, the BPI, yesterday said the market had reached a tipping point towards digital downloads and streaming of tracks. A report from the BPI claimed that 27 per cent of people now use legal digital music services, with a fifth buying solely via digital channels. The trade body said that [...]
UK braced for Chinese spree February 7, 2013 UK RETAILERS are braced for an increase in Chinese shoppers next week as New Year celebrations coincide with Golden Week, one of the country’s biggest holiday periods for Chinese tourists. Global Blue, the tax-free shopping services company, said its expects to see a repeat of the 30 per cent year-on-year growth in tax free sales [...]
Burberry board change as chief of finance quits February 7, 2013 BURBERRY finance chief Stacey Cartwright is to step down from the luxury group in a management shake-up that will also see the creation of a chief operating officer role. Cartwright, a widely respected industry figure who has been at the fashion house for nine years, is to leave in July “to pursue other interests”, Burberry [...]
Supergroup shares leap on festive sales boost February 7, 2013 SUPERGROUP chief executive Julian Dunkerton said improvements made to its product range and a better organized company helped drive a double-digit growth in sales over the third quarter and place it firmly among the Christmas winners. Shares leapt nearly 10 per cent yesterday as the Superdry owner, which was plagued by a string of setbacks [...]
Belt-tightening customers hit Vodafone sales February 7, 2013 PLUNGING sales in southern Europe pulled Vodafone’s revenues down during the final three months of 2012, as wary consumers cut their phone bills. The company saw revenues fall by two per cent year-on-year to £11.4bn as weakness in Spain and Italy moved service revenue – the amount customers pay on their mobile phone bill – [...]
A divided world sends a series of gloomy messages February 7, 2013 VODAFONE has been a lucrative stock for shareholders of late, at least in terms of the billions in dividends and share buybacks: £10.2bn in cash returns in 2012 alone. Investors seemed ready to keep the faith yesterday, buoying the share price. But at some point the fundamentals have to reassert themselves. And on the latest [...]
