Fall in profits at Jaguar Land Rover hits parent Tata Motors February 14, 2013 TATA Motors posted its first drop in profit in five quarters yesterday after its Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) business faced higher spending and a drop in operating margin following 18 months of soaring profit. Rising investment costs and falling profitability at the carmaker, whose profits have propped up its weaker parent for the past year [...]
Pernod Ricard mulls a shot at tequila company as sales rise February 14, 2013 FRENCH spirits maker Pernod Ricard yesterday hinted that it could make a bid for tequila powerhouse Jose Cuervo after rival Diageo walked away from a deal. Pernod Ricard, the world’s second-biggest spirits group behind Diageo, also stuck with its target of full-year profit growth yesterday, thanks to demand from Asia and the US that offset [...]
Pepsi posts rising revenues February 14, 2013 PepsiCo reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit yesterday, helped by increases in sales volume and prices, and gave a 2013 forecast consistent with its ongoing turnaround plan. The American drinks and snacks maker posted net income of $1.66bn (£1.07bn), up 17 per cent on a year ago and beating Wall Street forecasts. Net revenue fell one [...]
Publicis expects a tricky year February 14, 2013 Ad agency Publicis finished 2012 on a high note as sales got a big bump from emerging markets and on-line marketing, yet it warned yesterday that the year ahead would be difficult, especially in Europe. The group, which competes with larger rivals WPP and Omnicom, posted organic growth of 3.9 per cent in the fourth [...]
Talvivaara launches €260m cash call to improve finances February 14, 2013 FINNISH miner Talvivaara yesterday said it will launch a rights issue, as it swung to a loss of €104m (£67m) over 2012. It hopes that its €260m cash call will help to shore up its balance sheet as the miner recovers from a year that has seen a mine closure and the company being demoted [...]
Chinese buyers poised to step up search for London property February 14, 2013 CHINESE investors’ appetite for London property is expected to increase this year after the Chinese government relaxed rules on offshore investment. Savills said the recent relaxation on the investment of insurance proceeds by the Chinese Insurance Regulatory Commission could result in up to £10bn of new inward investment into London. Research published by the property [...]
MPs slate Treasury for neglect of finance management role February 14, 2013 THE PUBLIC Accounts Committee (PAC) this morning blasted the Treasury for focusing solely on its economic mission and “appearing to neglect” its role as finance ministry. Labour’s Margaret Hodge, PAC chair, accused the department, run by chancellor George Osborne, of producing “impenetrable accounts” and failing to properly oversee a proliferation of “instances of poor decision [...]
Buy to let loans grow to 12pc of market in 2012 February 14, 2013 THE BUY-TO-LET market enjoyed rapid expansion in 2012, ballooning back up towards its pre-recession peak, according to figures out yesterday. Buy-to let lending exploded 19 per cent between 2011 and last year, from £13.8bn to £16.4bn, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said. This boom saw it taking up 11.5 per cent of total gross [...]
Foreign visits to the UK creep up despite impact of Olympics February 14, 2013 THE UK enjoyed a slightly higher flow of tourists coming into the country in 2012, despite a fall in visits during the time of the Olympic and Paralympic games. Total visits to the UK crept up one per cent to 31.1m in 2012, compared to 2011, according to figures released by the Office for National [...]
CentreForum says equity could fill small business funding gap February 14, 2013 THE GOVERNMENT must slash financial taxes and cut red tape to allow small firms to fill their funding gaps by going public, a think tank said yesterday. Ending the tax and regulatory bias toward debt finance would be a massive step toward narrowing the £59bn funding gap faced by small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), [...]
