Serco buys out Oz maritime firm November 7, 2012 Services firm Serco has agreed to buy the remaining 50 per cent stake in Australian defence and marine services firm DMS Maritime for A$106m (£68m) in cash. Serco said the deal with one of Australia’s largest maritime service operators would strengthen its position as a defence services provider in the country.
Sales rise at Spirax-Sarco November 7, 2012 Valve maker Spirax-Sarco yesterday said organic sales were up six per cent in the four months to October, boosted by double-digit sales growth in the Asia Pacific region and subsidiary Watson-Marlow. Operating profit was eight per cent ahead. The engineer also said it had bought a Chilean distributor for £3.3m.
RPS on track to meet targets November 7, 2012 Natural resources, land and property consultancy RPS Group is on track to meet its full-year expectations, it said yesterday. Results in the nine months to September were “well ahead” of the same period in 2011, the consultancy added, boosted by strong performance in its energy and energy infrastructure markets.
Haldane attack on inconsistent Basel risk rules November 7, 2012 THE BASEL rules on bank capital levels are “built on the shakiest of foundations,” the Bank of England’s Andy Haldane warned yesterday, arguing that banks have too little certainty in how to risk-weight their assets. The official also told MPs and peers that insurance rules are similarly poorly designed, bank bondholders should get votes like [...]
University gap between rich and poor narrows, report says November 7, 2012 THE GAP between the university attendance of the richest and the poorest narrowed between 2004-5 and 2009-10, a think tank said today, just as the tuition fee cap was raised. The gap in higher education participation between the best-off and worst-off state school students narrowed from 40 per cent in 2004-5 to 37 per cent [...]
Ex-policymaker wants Bank to plan for interest rate hike November 7, 2012 THE BANK of England should abandon quantitative easing (QE) for the time being, and plan on bringing the base interest rate back up towards “sustainable” levels by mid-2015, ex-ratesetter Andrew Sentance said today. The risks of the bank’s “very loose” monetary policy are beginning to outweigh the benefits, Sentance argued, especially when the economy is [...]
Bailey says his judgement is best chance for banking sector November 7, 2012 TOP banking official Andrew Bailey yesterday denied claims that judgement-based regulation will lead to uncertainty and arbitrary controls in the banking sector, instead arguing it represents the best way to reduce complexity in regulations. Regulators have faced criticism for promoting a “shoot first, ask questions later” model, as it could give excessive powers to the [...]
Revenues rise at Aer Lingus November 7, 2012 IRISH airline Aer Lingus said yesterday its operating profits slipped in the third quarter, but that year to date earnings remain almost 30 per cent ahead of last year. Operating profits fell 2.9 per cent to €90.9m (£72.6m), the carrier said, while revenues rose 5.7 per cent to €460.8m. Aer Lingus also posted strong yield [...]
Stobart eyes £25m bond November 7, 2012 STOBART, the transport and infrastructure group, is considering the launch of a retail bond to raise around £25m. The terms of the issue have yet to be finalised and, according to informed market sources, the issue might yet be pulled over a disagreement over the rate of interest Canaccord is suggesting the group pays for [...]
Upgrade delay and regulation hit O2 revenue November 7, 2012 BRITAIN’S second-largest mobile network O2 saw revenue fall more than five per cent in the third quarter as customers held off on renewing contracts ahead of the launch of the iPhone 5, it said yesterday. Regulation on roaming charges and mobile termination rates – the amount networks can charge for calls to other operators – [...]
