Unilever boss spurns London January 17, 2010 New Unilever chief executive Paul Polman has dealt the government another blow by electing to remain resident in Switzerland rather than relocate to the UK’s less tax-friendly shores. Polman, who recently warned in a speech that British politicians need to recognise the importance of creating a climate “in which businesses can prosper and compete”, was [...]
Avatar to net Ingenious $200m January 17, 2010 James Cameron’s epic sci-fi blockbuster Avatar is set to net media finance firm Ingenious Media a windfall profit of $200m (£123m) if the film goes on to become the highest-grossing film in history as expected. It is thought that Ingenious invested around $75m in the project along with fellow backers 20th Century Fox and Dune [...]
Gloom lifting, say finance professionals January 17, 2010 OVER four-fifths of finance professionals believe the global economy is improving, but many are sceptical about lasting changes in the financial system once the recession is over, according to a survey conducted by business lawyers Norton Rose. Seventy per cent of the 125 financial professionals questioned felt the financial landscape had been changed forever when [...]
Election timing is all as the economy wobbles January 17, 2010 It’s not supposed to be easy being Prime Minister, but even this one must wonder what he did in a former life to incur such wrath. Within a few days of launching election mode yet another miserable attempt at a coup had been made and failed, damaging the Government’s chances of re-election still further. Post [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS January 17, 2010 Charles Stanley The City stockbroking firm has appointed Andrew Atkins as head of new fund sales and distribution. Atkins joins from Lloyd George Asset Management and will be in charge of distributing the firm’s entire fund range, including the new value boutique Matterley, acquired by Charles Stanley last year. In his new role, he will [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS January 17, 2010 ASSOCIATED BRITISH FOODS Evolution Securities has upgraded its target price to 950p on its “buy” recommendation of ABF. Despite a recent rally, Evo said the company “still looks compelling value” with earnings forecast at 66p. It said all three of ABF’s largest divisions (Primark, Grocery and Sugar) are firing on all cylinders, and expects further [...]
Media Corp is buoyed by Google truce January 17, 2010 INTERNET advertising company Media Corporation will announce strong first quarter trading numbers today after search giant Google lifted a penalty on two of its websites. The group, which is expected to report a £1.3m loss for the year to September 2009, said pre-tax profits swung from the red to £370,000 in the three months to [...]
Weak sterling helps push up inflation rate January 17, 2010 INFLATION is forecast to have surged in December, fuelling concerns that the Bank of England’s ultra-loose monetary policy is allowing inflationary pressures to build up. Economists on average expect the annual rate of inflation in December – published on Tuesday – to hit 2.5 per cent, with further rises in the pipeline. December marks the [...]
SHOULD THE MPC PAY ATTENTION TO THE STRONG UPTREND IN UK INFLATION ? January 17, 2010 MICHAEL SAUNDERS | CITIGROUP I doubt the MPC will totally dismiss the inflation upsurge because of the risk that its anti-inflation credibility continues to erode. Outside recession, an inflation targeting central bank cannot credibly ignore such large and repeated upside surprises in inflation data. PHILIP SHAW | INVESTEC We do not envisage significant concerns here, [...]
Markets are still at risk of a relapse January 17, 2010 AS anybody who has ever watched a medical drama on television will know, signs of recovery are not always what they appear to be. This is especially true when the illness has been serious and the recovery is swift. This is just as true for the markets as it is for photogenic hospital patients. It [...]
