Pension firms forced to slash growth rates November 1, 2012 PEOPLE saving for pensions will see the projected size of their final pension pots slashed under new rules imposed by the financial watchdog. The Financial Services Authority (FSA) yesterday confirmed that the projection rates used by pension companies to give investors an idea of what their pension will be worth when they retire must be [...]
Hurricane Sandy set to push up insurance premiums next year November 1, 2012 HURRICANE Sandy, which lashed the Caribbean and east coast of the US earlier this week, will help push up insurance rates in the affected regions, according to one leading analyst. Paul Bauer at ratings agency Moody’s said yesterday that “the event will likely help support price increases going into 2013”. However he insisted that the US property and [...]
Property firm scraps £250m London float November 1, 2012 BAHRAIN-BASED investment firm Arcapita has withdrawn a planned London listing of its PointPark Properties (P3) unit, highlighting valuation gaps still exist between sellers and investors despite renewed life in the IPO market. Developer P3, which has 46 warehouse properties across Europe, had hoped to raise around £250m through the London IPO, which was announced last [...]
James Murdoch eases through BSkyB meeting November 1, 2012 JAMES Murdoch sailed through a shareholder vote over his future on BSkyB’s board at the broadcaster’s annual meeting yesterday, on the same day that it posted results above expectations thanks to moving more customers onto its “triple-play” contracts. BSkyB said it now has a third of its 10.7m customers taking pay-TV, broadband and home phone [...]
Apple slapped by UK judge on statement over Samsung case November 1, 2012 APPLE was yesterday reprimanded by a British judge for posting an inaccurate statement on its website associated with a UK Court of Appeal ruling that concluded arch-rival Samsung’s tablet device did not copy the iPad. After Apple lost an appeal last month against an earlier High Court ruling that Samsung had not copied the iPad’s [...]
Analyst Views | Have Bskyb’s results affected your outlook for the company? November 1, 2012 THOMAS SINGLEHURST CITI We expect full-year dividends up three to five per cent based on these numbers. This reinforces our fundamentally positive view on BSkyB which is predicated on the view that growth is much more solid/predictable than investors might expect. We are buyers with an 850p target. PATRICK YAU PEEL HUNT BSkyB’s numbers were [...]
Legal & General sees sales jump to record high November 1, 2012 INSURER Legal & General (L&G) yesterday announced record sales for the three months between June and September, with a 28 per cent growth in new business to £533m – as the firm’s chief executive warned that forthcoming EU industry reforms might never be implemented. The firm enjoyed a bumper quarter, largely thanks to strong growth in workplace [...]
Osborne warns rebels there is little chance of EU budget cut November 1, 2012 GEORGE Osborne yesterday admitted that Britain has little chance of securing a real-terms cut to the EU budget, despite losing a parliamentary vote on the matter. “I want a cut in the EU budget, David Cameron wants a cut, pretty much every Conservative wants a cut,” Osborne told the BBC. But he warned: “We’ve not just got [...]
Pharma firm Pfizer falls short on slowing new market sales November 1, 2012 US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer yesterday posted quarterly revenue well below Wall Street expectations, on disappointing sales of its Prevnar pediatric vaccine and a sharp pullback in emerging market revenue. Results were also hurt by weaker-than-expected sales of Pfizer’s Lipitor cholesterol fighter, which has been facing cheaper generics since late last year. The firm earned $3.21bn [...]
International accounting body in bid to ramp up its authority November 1, 2012 THE WORLD’S top accounting rulesetter unveiled plans yesterday aimed at buttressing its authority and independence in the face of calls from European groups for a greater say in how new standards are shaped. The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) proposed yesterday an Accounting Standards Advisory Forum comprising 12 members from across the world. The board [...]
