Ryanair profits fall by over 20 per cent in first quarter but still expects to hit targets July 29, 2013 The low-cost airline Ryanair has announced that its post-tax profits fell by 21 per cent in the first quarter to €78m (£67m) (release). Passenger numbers grew by three per cent to 23.2m in the same period with revenue up five per cent to €1,342m (£1158m). Ryanair's CEO, Michael O'Leary, said: As ever, our outlook remains [...]
Ad giants Publicis and Omnicom agree $35bn tie-up July 28, 2013 MEDIA powerhouses Publicis and Omnicom have agreed to merge, in a deal that will create the world’s largest advertising firm. The companies, which spent several months in talks before yesterday’s announcement, generated a total of $22.7bn (£14.8bn) in revenues last year, and have a combined market value of $35.1bn. Omnicom will keep its [...]
Bank lending and alternative credit to boom as UK recovers July 28, 2013 PEER to peer lending is set to boom, increasing five-fold in the coming three years as small firms seek more credit to expand, the Ernst and Young Item Club forecasts today. And bank lending to businesses is at last set to grow again after falling 25 per cent through the financial crisis. Crowdfunding – where [...]
Job market heats up but low-paid work dominates July 28, 2013 THE NUMBER of job vacancies is still growing, but the labour market is filling up with low-paid jobs as the economy recovers, according to data released by jobs site Adzuna. The group’s report on the jobs market for June suggests that vacancies have risen by 2.5 per cent in the past 12 months, but the [...]
Global bond bubble will cripple all investors when it bursts July 28, 2013 THIS column has long highlighted the massive bubble in the global bond markets and the horrific, systemic risk it poses to the global recovery and financial system. A combination of ultra-low central bank short-term interest rates, massive amounts of quantitative easing (QE), regulatory-driven purchases of government bonds by financial institutions and Asian forex accumulation have [...]
Spending cuts to be delayed for three years July 28, 2013 GOVERNMENT spending in the UK will barely change before the next general election, according to research released today by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR). The forecasters are expecting government spending to rise by 0.4 per cent this year, correcting with cuts of only 0.2 per cent in 2014 and 2015. Significant reductions [...]
Dell founder says he will not lift bid further July 28, 2013 DELL founder Michael Dell has confirmed that he and Silver Lake Management will not raise their buyout offer for the computer maker after raising the price last week to $13.75 a share. “This is our best and final offer,” he told the Wall Street Journal. “The fact that many parties over many months looked at [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 29 July 2013 July 28, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Treasury pledges £2m for SFO probe The UK Treasury is expected to pledge special “blockbuster” funding to the Serious Fraud Office to back its investigation into Barclays’ emergency fundraising five years ago, in a sign of the agency’s escalating probe into the bank. The cash-strapped SFO, which launched a criminal investigation into the [...]
London housing begins to price out businesses July 28, 2013 BUSINESSES warned the government today that rising property prices could undermine investment in the capital, as firms struggle to keep up. According to the statement by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and KPMG, the shortage of housing has risen from companies’ third most pressing concern to their second since December, overtaking transport. The number [...]
China says 18 more people held over bribery claims against GSK July 28, 2013 CHINESE authorities have detained at least 18 people as part of an investigation into pharma group GlaxoSmithKline, according to state media. China’s state radio said police had “recently held, in accordance with the law, 18 GlaxoSmithKline (China) employees and some medical personnel”. A spokesperson for Glaxo declined to comment yesterday. Chief executive Andrew Witty said [...]
