Berggruen to float cash shell on LSE February 6, 2011 THE “homeless billionaire” Nicolas Berggruen is to float a cash shell on the London Stock Exchange. He will seek £700m from investors for his Justice investment vehicle, which he plans to use to make an acquisition worth between £1bn and £5bn. It is understood Lord Myners, who was appointed City minister in 2008 under the [...]
Nasdaq to open as normal after hack February 6, 2011 TRADING on the Nasdaq OMX exchange is expected to go ahead as normal this morning, after suspicious files were found on its servers over the weekend following a hacking enquiry. Nasdaq said yesterday that malicious software had been found on its Directors’ Desk interface, which provides online information for corporate officers. But the exchange operator said [...]
Lagarde: rescue fund sufficient February 6, 2011 FRENCH economy Minister Christine Lagarde said yesterday that the Eurozone’s package of rescue funds were enough to face off future crises. France and Germany want Eurozone leaders to sign off on a “comprehensive package” aimed at halting the bloc’s year-long debt crisis, including changes to the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), the €440bn bailout fund [...]
ABI warns on bonus payouts February 6, 2011 THE Association of British Insurers (ABI) has warned the UK’s top 350 public firms against offering executive pay deals with unlimited bonuses. An ABI letter sent to all FTSE 350 firms warns that its institutional voting information service (IVIS) would issue a “red top” alert on uncapped pay deals where there was no proof of [...]
Fiat and Chrysler boss revs up for controversy February 6, 2011 FIAT and Chrysler boss Sergio Marchionne caused a storm by saying he could move the firm’s headquarters from Turin to the US. He also said bail-out loans from the US carried “shyster rates.” He later said he regretted the comment.
Market tense over rate rise February 6, 2011 MARKETS are nervously awaiting the results of the Bank of England’s latest meeting on interest rates. “We expect a considerable degree of market tension ahead of Thursday’s monetary policy committee (MPC) announcement,” said Investec’s Philip Shaw. Sterling rose last week after MPC members Andrew Sentance and Charles Bean gave interviews which suggested a leaning towards [...]
Report: emerging economies crucial for British exporters February 6, 2011 EXPORTS from the UK will rebound over the next decade, driven by a boom in goods and services going to emerging markets, a leading group of economists said today. Overall exports will rise by 8.5 per cent a year, according to forecasters at the Ernst and Young Item Club. The total value of UK goods [...]
ECONOMISTS’ VIEWS: WILL THE BANK RAISE INTEREST RATES THIS WEEK? February 6, 2011 PHILIP SHAW | INVESTEC “A rate rise is possible, but unlikely. For rates to rise, the two existing ‘hawks’ would need to be joined by Tucker, Dale and Miles. This is possible, but it seems more likely that the Bank rate will remain at 0.5 per cent this time.” GEOFFREY WOOD | CASS BUSINESS SCHOOL [...]
IoD: cut taxes and red tape February 6, 2011 TWO dozen policy changes to encourage growth could be made by the government at no extra cost to taxpayers, the Institute of Directors recommended today. The proposed reforms fall under 10 main areas for the coalition to focus on, the IoD said. The inherent tendency of governments to over-regulate requires a “game changer” in civil [...]
Higher multiples for UK company deals February 6, 2011 PRICE to earnings multiples on purchases of private companies increased last year and will continue to rise in 2011, according to new research out today. Multiples paid by trade buyers for private companies rose from average of 11.2 times in 2009 to 11.7 times in 2010, the BDO private company price index showed. And for [...]
