Q&A SHARE PLANS February 11, 2010 Q. I am an entrepreneur and I am thinking about a share scheme for my employees. What are the benefits for the employer and employee? A.Typically, employee share ownership schemes, or share option schemes, are used by small businesses for the same reasons that they are used by large multi-national corporations: to incentivise, reward and [...]
Repossessions fall as rates kept low February 11, 2010 THE number of homes repossessed in 2009 reached its highest level since 1996 but an unexpected decline in repossessions in the fourth quarter saw the annual figure beat forecasts, the Council for Mortgage Lenders (CML) said yesterday. A 13 per cent fall in the number of repossessions in the fourth quarter meant that only 46,000 [...]
Sports Direct celebrates a double victory February 11, 2010 SPORTS Direct has seen a surge in sales and been cleared by a competition commission investigation. Britain’s largest sports retailer raised its full-year profit guidance yesterday after the sales jump for the 13 weeks to 24 January. Retail sales rose 9.4 per cent to £326m – lifting gross profit to £136m. Sports Direct – which [...]
Get into the foreign property game at a fraction of the cost February 11, 2010 FOR many people, owning a foreign property would be the ultimate luxury. However, dealing with local authorities, maintaining the place, or renting it out can turn a luxury into a time-consuming, costly hassle. And that assumes you can really afford the place of your dreams, rather than a flat in a high-rise overlooking a crowded [...]
BANK OF IRELAND’S DEBT EXCHANGE February 11, 2010 BANK of Ireland (BoI) expects to raise around €405m (£353.1m) after completing a debt exchange yesterday. BoI, led by chief executive Richie Boucher, which last year received €3.5bn from the government in return for preference shares, said it had successfully swapped debt with a nominal value of €2.9bn for fresh 10-year paper.
S&N’s strong profits beat expectations February 11, 2010 Smith & Nephew (S&N), the hips-and-knees maker, posted higher profits in the final quarter of last year after the replacement joints market stabilised. The market suffered during the recession, but started to recover in the second half. Traditional hip and knee ranges, like its Legion knee, did well, particularly in the US, while products designed [...]
Buffett closes in on $27bn railroad deal February 11, 2010 Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp shareholders approved the second largest US railroad company’s takeover by Berkshire Hathaway yesterday, clearing the way for the acquisition by billionaire investor Warren Buffett to be completed today. Berkshire is buying the 77.4 per cent of Burlington Northern that it did not already own. The cash-and-stock transaction was valued at [...]
Government bonus tax fails to stop investment bank payouts February 11, 2010 BANKING bonuses have soared over this financial year, demonstrating a stark failure by chancellor Alistair Darling to rein in hefty City payouts through the new Bank Payroll Tax. Of those bankers and finance workers who have already had 2009 bonuses confirmed, 57 per cent said their payouts had increased, according to a survey by eFinancialCareers.com. [...]
FOCUS ON: DARTFORD, KENT February 11, 2010 EYNSFORD HOUSE, HIGH STREET, EYNSFORD, DA4 0AA Price: £850,000 This Grade II-listed cottage is in the heart of Eynsford, which is just outside Dartford and 40 minutes from Victoria by train. The house, dating from the 18th century, has plenty of period features such as beams, an exposed brick fireplace and arched door frames. There [...]
Resolution says deals to come before 2012 February 11, 2010 INSURANCE bid vehicle Resolution insisted its acquisition plans were on track yesterday despite a 16 per cent slide in its share price since the start of the year. Chief executive John Tiner said the team was “very confident indeed” it would make two more significant deals by 2012 after its £1.8bn takeover of life company [...]
