Bottom Line: Ad giants at watchdogs’ mercy July 28, 2013 RIVAL boss of ad firm Havas David Jones took to Twitter when he heard rumours of the Omnicom-Publicis deal, scoffing “oh wow just saw a flying pig”. It turns out it was no pig, it was a well-camouflaged POG: Publicis Omnicom Group, six months in the planning yet still a bolt from the blue. [...]
MPs call for full breakdown of all energy bills July 28, 2013 ENERGY suppliers should be forced to tell customers exactly how much climate change policies are adding to their fuel bill, according to a report released today by MPs. The energy and climate change select committee says industry regulator Ofgem should restore consumer confidence in the market by requiring suppliers to state how various components have [...]
Siemens boss set to be sacked in aftermath of profit warning July 28, 2013 GERMAN engineering giant Siemens is expected to sack chief executive Peter Loescher on Wednesday, after the company issued another profit warning. The company’s board said it would “decide on the early departure of the president and CEO” when it meets later this week, before appointing “a member of the managing board” as replacement. Despite this, [...]
Immigration stats criticised July 28, 2013 OFFICIAL immigration statistics are “little better than a best guess”, according to a report released yesterday by MPs. The public accounts select committee says figures produced by the Office of National Statistics and Home Office rely mainly on random interviews with 5,000 migrants per year at UK airports and ports. The committee says this makes [...]
Obama getting ready to reveal next Fed boss July 28, 2013 PRESIDENT Obama is examining the field of candidates to take over from outgoing Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke, he said over the weekend, and will announce the next central bank boss in the coming months. A host of top academics and policymakers are in the running for the job, from without the Fed and outside [...]
Mo Farah calls for Barclays to change mind on payment firms July 28, 2013 BARCLAYS yesterday rejected calls from Olympic champion Mo Farah to keep working with up to 250 payments firms, including four who send payments to Somalia. A crackdown on banks who do not take proper precautions against money launderers means lenders are reviewing who they work with. “Cutting this lifeline would be a disaster for millions,” [...]
Banks’ PPI bill set to increase July 28, 2013 BARCLAYS is expected to set aside more money tomorrow to pay compensation to customers who were missold payment protection insurance and interest rate swaps. The bank will set aside at least another £150m to repay small firms who were missold swaps, taking the total compensation bill for those products to more than £1bn, according to [...]
Aviva eyes Asian expansion with Indonesian deal July 28, 2013 BRITISH insurance giant Aviva is considering expanding its Asian business in partnership with a division of conglomerate Jardine Matheson, it was reported yesterday. New chief executive Mark Wilson is in early stage talks with Indonesian automobile sales group Astra International about a potential tie-up, according to the Sunday Telegraph. This could then lead to similar [...]
Cyprus and lenders set Bank of Cyprus bail-in at 47.5 per cent July 28, 2013 CYPRUS and its international lenders have agreed to convert 47.5 per cent of deposits exceeding €100,000 (£86,310) in Bank of Cyprus to equity to recapitalise it, banking sources said yesterday. Under a programme agreed between Cyprus and lenders in March, large depositors in Bank of Cyprus were earmarked to pay for the recapitalisation of the [...]
Deloitte at MG Rover hearing July 28, 2013 DELOITTE will this week appear before a tribunal over its role as adviser during the collapse of MG Rover in 2005. The accountancy firm also advised four of Rover’s directors, known as the Phoenix Four, who bought the firm for £10 five years earlier. Deloitte and ex-partner Maghsoud Einollahi face unlimited fines if the tribunal [...]
