L’Oreal exec says Asia is slowing November 5, 2012 L’Oreal, the world’s biggest cosmetics group, is feeling the effects of the slowdown in China and “brutal” trading conditions in South Korea and Taiwan, the company said. The group’s turnover from luxury goods in South Korea is down two to three per cent this year after achieving eight per cent growth last year, L’Oreal’s Asia-Pacific [...]
BG Group agrees credit facility November 5, 2012 Energy firm BG Group has agreed a new five-year $3bn (£1.9bn) credit facility, to replace an existing $2.3bn credit facility. The new facility was coordinated by Bank of America Merrill Lynch and HSBC, and includes a variety of banks, BG Group said. The new facility will stand alongside the $2.2bn five-year line of credit agreed [...]
City Moves | Who’s switching jobs November 5, 2012 Caledonia Investments Sally Flanagan has been appointed associate director for the investment trust company’s unquoted pool. She joins from Permira Advisers, where she was global head of healthcare. Flanagan is an experienced private equity investor, and will report to head of unquoted investments Duncan Johnson. Capco The business consultancy has appointed professor Damiano Brigo to [...]
Best of the Brokers November 5, 2012 WILLIAM HILL UBS has downgraded William Hill from “buy” to “neutral” and lifted its target price from 315p to 360p as it nears two deals to buy Sportingbet and Playtech’s stake in William Hill online. MILLENNIUM AND COPTHORNE Credit Suisse has downgraded the hotel group from to “neutral” from “outperform” and said with trading risks [...]
FTSE falls on uncertainty over US election and fall in price of copper November 5, 2012 BRITISH blue-chip firms fell yesterday as investors eased back on risky plays ahead of US elections, with miners among the top fallers as they continued to suffer from the low price of copper. At the close, the FTSE 100 was down 29.490 points, or 0.5 per cent, at 5,839.06, in thin trading volumes of 70 [...]
US shares rise in light trade as vote looms November 5, 2012 US stocks advanced modestly yesterday in light trading in one of the year’s quietest sessions on the day before the US presidential election. Whatever the outcome of the race between incumbent President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney, the election’s resolution will finally end the uncertainty that has kept the market stagnant for the [...]
A bitter US campaign has failed to find consensus on menacing debt November 5, 2012 AFTER the victory celebrations have ended, whoever wins tonight’s US presidential election will face a nasty, prolonged, economic hangover. And, as Britain’s closest ally, what happens in the US will have firm implications for this side of the Atlantic. It has been a bitter and unpleasant campaign and, unless a tribal and divided Congress can [...]
Public sector cuts aren’t depressing growth – but private sector austerity is November 5, 2012 AMONTH tomorrow, George Osborne will deliver his Autumn Statement. On current policies, the Office for Budget Responsibility will suggest he will fail to meet his target of a falling debt-to-GDP ratio by the end of the parliament. This leads to a question: should Osborne announce further fiscal consolidation or should he abandon the target? Nick [...]
Why the coalition must freeze rates on retail premises November 5, 2012 THERE IS nothing sexy about business rates. They don’t have much globe-trotting glamour and perhaps that’s part of the problem. As taxes go, they’re more a cup of tea than a café au lait. One of the government’s flagship business pledges is to make the UK the most competitive tax regime in the G20. It’s [...]
As the mayor announces a rise in London’s Living Wage, does it make economic sense? November 5, 2012 YES Boris Johnson Since its introduction in 2005 an estimated 11,500 workers have benefited from the London Living Wage rate. Over a full year, this year’s rise will put around £4.5m into the pockets of lower-paid Londoners. Recent research from Queen Mary University showed that introducing the London Living Wage improves staff retention rates for [...]
