I recreated all my favourite TV tropes, from crawling through pipes to being two kids in a trenchcoat
Darling lowers 2010 borrowing forecast March 24, 2010 CHANCELLOR Alistair Darling yesterday announced an £11bn reduction in the Treasury’s borrowing forecast for 2009-10 to £167bn and reiterated his pledge to halve the budget deficit within four years. Under new forecasts announced during the Budget, public borrowing will fall to £74bn in 2014-15, the end of the forecast period. As a share of GDP, [...]
Budget makes £100m available so that British drivers can travel in comfort March 24, 2010 THE freezing winter has forced Alistair Darling into spending £100m on none other than potholes. The craters were opened up by the wear and tear of lorries and cars on our snow filled roads from November through to the end of February. A report published yesterday showed that pothole repairs rose 40 per cent last [...]
Bellway ups dividend on profit return March 24, 2010 HOUSEBUILDER Bellway is looking to boost its activity levels in coming months after returning to profit in its first half trading. The UK’s fifth largest housebuilder, led by chief executive John Watson, posted profits of £19m for the six months to 31 January amid strong growth in the number of homes sold. This compares to [...]
Delta booms after Leighton counterbid derails Valmont March 24, 2010 SHAREHOLDERS in Delta, the engineered steel specialist, cheered as Australian services company Leighton gatecrashed an unpopular takeover attempt by Valmont Industries of the US yesterday. Delta said it was in talks about a possible offer with a third party, identified by market sources to City A.M. as Leighton. The move comes after Delta’s board recommended [...]
Soco reassures on funding needs March 24, 2010 SOCO International, the oil explorer, reported a full-year net profit yesterday that missed market expectations, but said it did not require additional funding in the short term. For the year ended 31 December, the company posted a net profit of $51.1m (£34.3m), compared with $411.1m a year ago. The company had made a profit of [...]
Smiths boosts sales by 12pc March 24, 2010 SMITHS Group, the technology firm, reported a 12 per cent increase in first-half profits as margins improved to a 10-year high thanks to cost cuts. Smiths, whose products range from airport x-ray scanners to medical equipment, posted headline operating profit for the six months to the end of January of £207m on sales down one [...]
Profits flat at Tenon after acquisition March 24, 2010 ENTREPRENEURIAL business advisory firm RSM Tenon yesterday said profits remained broadly flat over the first half of its financial year after the group completed its largest-ever acquisition, adding that it plans to move to London’s official list before mid-2010. Tenon said adjusted pre-tax profit came in at £5.9m for the six months to December, up [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS March 24, 2010 VANGUARD INVESTMENTS The investment group has appointed David Plumstead to lead its institutional and corporate sales team in the UK. Plumstead initially joined Vanguard in July last year as business development manager, responsible for managing relationships across UK platforms. He has over 25 years of industry experience and previously worked for both Clerical Medical and [...]
Stobart joins forces in biomass venture March 24, 2010 BRITISH logistics company Stobart Group yesterday announced a venture into the UK renewable energy market with a deal to source and supply biomass fuel. Stobart said it has set up a joint venture with wood-related biomass supplier A.W. Jenkinson to supply biomass fuel, with a linked transportation contract for Eddie Stobart, whose lorries are a [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS March 24, 2010 ALLIANCE PHARMA Numis Securities rates Alliance Pharma “buy” citing its 44 per cent sales growth and a 200 per cent rise in earnings per share. Says the outlook is strong for 2010. CABLE & WIRELESS Collins Stewart is positive on Cable & Wireless saying the prospects for both growth and high dividend yield from the 26 [...]
