Norwegian GDP growth slows May 24, 2011 Norway’s mainland GDP grew slower than the market expectation in the first three months of the year. The economy expanded by 0.6 per cent, after 0.3 per cent growth in the final quarter of last year.
New home sales pick up in US May 24, 2011 The US housing market showed signs of improvement in April, data showed yesterday. Sales of new homes increased by 7.3 per cent to 323,000 in April from a revised 301,000 in March.
Nestle makes $1bn move in US pharma May 24, 2011 NESTLE, the world’s biggest food group, has agreed to buy US gastrointestinal diagnostics firm Prometheus Laboratories for an estimated $1.1bn (£680.5m) as part of the Swiss group’s drive into health sciences. Nestle said Prometheus, which is expected to have annual sales of around $250m in 2012, makes tests to help doctors diagnose conditions such as [...]
Sony shares rise on upbeat outlook despite fresh hacking of online info May 24, 2011 SONY’S shares bounced from two-month lows yesterday as expectations were raised that it might have put its troubles behind it after it said this year’s operating profit would match last year’s, easing worries about the impact of the March earthquake. In its first estimate for the year to March 2012, Sony said its operating profit [...]
Toshiba shifts focus from nuclear to offset order delays May 24, 2011 TOSHIBA said yesterday it may not reach its target of 39 orders for nuclear reactors until two to three years later than expected, and that it would increase focus on renewables as the crisis rumbles on at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. Despite the setback, Toshiba said it aims to more than double its operating [...]
Tepco admits rod damage May 24, 2011 TOKYO Electric Power (Tepco), the operator of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant disabled by the 11 March earthquake and tsunami, confirmed yesterday that there were meltdowns of fuel rods at three of the plant’s reactors early in the crisis. It had said earlier this month that fuel rods in the No.1 reactor had melted, [...]
Pennon flush with profit May 24, 2011 Waste and water company Pennon yesterday reported a pre-tax profit rise of 1.5 per cent to £188.5m for the first three months of the year and recommended a final dividend per share up 9.9 per cent to 17.15p. The company says it is well positioned in the current economic conditions with South West Water continuing [...]
Victrex plastics has strong sales May 24, 2011 Hi-tech plastics company Victrex announced a rise in pre-tax profit of 57 per cent to £48.3m boosted by strong sales of its polymer products used in aircraft components and car parts. The company, whose revenues increased as major markets showed a significant recovery, raised its dividend by 25 per cent for the first-half of 2011 [...]
Extended use for Roche drugs May 24, 2011 Roche’s cancer drug MabThera has been recommended as a maintenance drug for NHS patients with follicular non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE). NICE said it could postpone the spread and growth of cancer by up to four years.
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS May 24, 2011 May Gurney Margaret Ford, Baroness Ford of Cunninghame, will become non-executive chairman at the company’s AGM on 7 July 2011. In the interim she will be appointed to the board as a non-executive director, with immediate effect. Gurney, 53, recently retired from Serco as senior independent director and has extensive public company experience, including Grainger [...]
