Olympus lays out plans it hopes will quell scandal November 1, 2011 OLYMPUS yesterday announced a plan it hopes will help put an end to the scandal that threatens to drag the business to its knees. The endoscope and camera maker named six men, including a former Japanese supreme court justice, to investigate past M&A deals, which have been under intense scrutiny after record-breaking advisory fees were [...]
ARM snaps up American design firm November 1, 2011 ARM Holdings yesterday snapped up US design software firm Prolific, as chief executive Warren East reiterated his belief that the firm would suffer if it was subject to a US takeover. And East’s bullish attitude appeared justified later in the day, as Hewlett-Packard unveiled plans to develop extremely low-energy servers, utilising ARM technology. The Silicon Valley [...]
Online gaming firm 888 cashes in as customers stay at home and gamble November 1, 2011 Online gaming firm 888 expects 2011 earnings to be significantly ahead of estimates as squeezed consumers opted to stay home and gamble instead of venturing outside. Third-quarter sales grew 42 per cent to $86m (£54m), the highest quarterly revenue ever achieved in its history. It said it has more than 10m registered casino, poker and [...]
Perform Group reassures investors with solid results November 1, 2011 PERFORM yesterday continued its long journey to restore investor confidence after its disastrous IPO this year with a solid set of results. The media rights company posted year-on-year revenue growth of 55 per cent to £27.4m and said it is on track to hit full-year forecasts. Joint chief executive Oliver Slipper said: “We are very [...]
Rail and bus firms deliver revenue gains November 1, 2011 TRANSPORT firms Stagecoach and National Express reported rising ticket sales yesterday as commuters looking to avoid the high cost of cars turn to buses and trains. Underlying revenue at Stagecoach’s domestic rail business, which includes South West Trains, grew 8.7 per cent in the 24 weeks to 16 October, while Virgin Rail Group, a joint [...]
CITY VIEWS: HAS YOUR TRAIN CARRIAGE BEEN GETTING BUSIER? November 1, 2011 RON BARNES | MILES SMITH “Yes, they have become so busy that it is unbearable. The new fast trains on my route have been allowed to increase fares more than others. There also seem to be more houses being built along the line, presumably because of such expensive housing closer to the City.” CLIVE GILBERT [...]
Inchcape turnover gets lift from Asia Pacific as Europe weakens November 1, 2011 MULTINATIONAL car dealer Inchcape yesterday posted a rise in third-quarter revenue with an uneven global recovery in the car industry showing strong growth in Asia Pacific and the emerging markets, and a further weakening of consumer confidence across the UK and Europe. The British-based firm, which sells and distributes cars for manufacturers such as Toyota, [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS November 1, 2011 Marsh The insurance broker and risk adviser has appointed David Batchelor as head of its international division, comprising all operations outside North America. Batchelor, who will relocate to New York from London early next year, will remain chief executive of Marsh’s EMEA region throughout 2011. Batchelor began his career in 1976 at Bowring, which was [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS November 1, 2011 XCHANGING Panmure Gordon has upgraded the outsourcing company from “sell” to “hold” with a target price of 70p, seeing long-term value in the business, whose shares have lost more than 30 per cent in the last three months. The broker says good progress has been made this year since the appointment of Ken Lever as [...]
Shock of Greek referendum sends financial stocks down November 1, 2011 FINANCIAL stocks led Britain’s FTSE 100 sharply lower yesterday, after the Greek Prime Minister’s call for a referendum on the bailout package agreed last week sent shockwaves through markets and heightened tensions over debt contagion. London’s blue chips fell 122.65 points or 2.2 per cent to 5,421.57, echoing similar falls across the globe as investors [...]
