Direct Line float set to be priced despite insurer probe September 27, 2012 THE price range for the flotation of Direct Line is expected to be announced today despite news of a probe by competition regulators into the motor insurance market. The details of the pricing, which comes a couple of days later than expected, will likely show a range that values the insurer at between £2.2-2.8bn, against [...]
Spanish ministers unveil austerity budget for 2013 September 27, 2012 SPAIN’S government announced an austerity budget for 2013, yesterday, in a move seen as potentially paving the way for a full bailout from international lenders. Amidst strong protests in Madrid over the proposed cuts, deputy prime minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria insisted that 64 per cent of the budget is still devoted to social spending. [...]
Time for MPs to summon statisticians over endless revisions September 27, 2012 IT is hard to know whether we should believe anything we are told by our statistical masters. Originally, we were informed that the economy shrank by 0.7 per cent in the second quarter; then that it fell by 0.5 per cent; yesterday this was revised down to 0.4 per cent. The big picture hasn’t changed. [...]
What the other papers say this morning September 27, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES China buys into UK student housing A fund controlled by the Chinese government is set to buy a 40 per cent stake in the UK’s largest developer of student housing as Beijing continues to expand its portfolio of global infrastructure. Gingko Tree Investment, a London-registered Chinese state-owned fund, is understood to be closing [...]
Fee incomes at law firms worst for six quarters September 27, 2012 THE UK’s biggest law firms are growing fee income at the slowest rate for six quarters, according to data out this morning. Though average income across the UK’s top 100 firms grew by 3.8 per cent in the three months to 31 July, the rate of growth was the worst recorded since the final quarter [...]
Investment banking fees plunge September 27, 2012 Global investment banking fees in the third quarter fell to their lowest since early 2009, according to data from Thomson Reuters and Freeman Consulting. Investment banking fees in Europe so far in 2012 have fallen to levels not seen in ten years. Globally, the drop has been driven by a fall in share sale activity, [...]
Barclays to open new gold vault September 27, 2012 Barclays is set to open the first British bank-owned gold vault in over five years on the back of heightened gold ownership. The firm’s new vault anticipates demand from pension funds, central banks and sovereign wealth funds who have been scooping up the precious metal that has doubled in value since late 2008. The vault, [...]
Energetix to raise up to £14m September 27, 2012 AIM-listed Energetix Group – which is planning to launch a ‘green’ boiler that generates electricity as it heats your home – has raised £12m through a placing. The firm, chaired by ex-gas regulator Clare Spottiswoode, and led by ex-Dyson chief operating officer Peter Richardson, is now offering all shareholders the opportunity to participate in an [...]
Sports Direct set to snap up 60 JJB stores September 27, 2012 THE break-up of loss-making and debt-laden British sporting goods retailer JJB Sports is set to begin with market leader Sports Direct yesterday sealing a deal to buy 60 of its stores. JJB, based in Wigan, said on Monday it was close to appointing KPMG as administrators to sell its assets and brands after failing to [...]
Instagram smartphone users overtake Twitter for first time September 27, 2012 INSTAGRAM, the arty photo-sharing app for smartphones, has overtaken Twitter for the number of daily visitors and time spent using the app in the US for the first time following a summer boom in its popularity. During August, users spent about eight minutes a day adding filter effects and looking at photos on the app [...]
