Punch warns of renewed profits slide December 16, 2009 PUNCH Taverns has warned that profits will be hit again after reporting a fall in sales at its managed pubs in the past four months. The company, which has a net debt of £3.3bn, said that looming VAT rises and the continuing affect on trade of the recession were taking their toll. It has been [...]
Eye-catching deal for Essilor December 16, 2009 FRENCH corrective eye lens maker Essilor is to buy US group FGX International in a $565m (£345m) deal to boost its presence in the growing market for non-prescription reading glasses. The deal, which includes repayment of FGX’s net debt of about $100m, is worth $19.75 per FGX International share and will boost Essilor’s earnings per [...]
Clients of big banks reveal they lack trust in providers December 16, 2009 JUST 22 per cent of clients have trust in their current banking providers, according to a global study published by the IBM Institute for Business Value. The study, which conducted surveys in 13 countries, found that many banks continue to suffer from unsustainable cost structures and unreliable revenue streams. It added that much of the [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS December 16, 2009 Prudential The insurer has appointed Margaret Coltman as general counsel and company secretary. Coltman, who will also be on the executive committee, was initially appointed to the role in July on an interim basis, having formerly worked as general counsel and company secretary at Lloyds Banking Group. She started her career at law firm Norton [...]
NEWS | IN BRIEF December 16, 2009 Petrofac boosted by order rush Oil services group Petrofac yesterday said a rush of contract wins would boost its full-year profits by 25 per cent from last year. The group said it had had a surge of orders for work worth $6bn (£3.7bn) over the year. Petrofac, which designs and makes oil and gas infrastructure, [...]
Lampard’s spot on for Blues December 16, 2009 CHELSEA (2) VS PORTSMOUTH (1) FRANK LAMPARD rediscovered his range from the penalty spot to help Chelsea regain their three-point lead at the top of the Premier League. Lampard suffered a rare miss from the spot 11 days ago, culminating in a 2-1 defeat at Manchester City. But the England midfielder made no mistake this [...]
MK gets the nod for 2018 bid December 16, 2009 MILTON KEYNES Dons chairman Pete Winkelman couldn’t hide his delight after his club’s home was selected as one of the candidate host stadiums for England’s 2018 World Cup bid. Stadium:MK was the surprise selection after 2018 bid chiefs confirmed the 12 cities that will front England’s campaign. Plymouth was also given the nod, but Derby, [...]
Zamora stars as Fulham march on December 16, 2009 BASLE (2) VS FULHAM (3) BOBBY ZAMORA notched an impressive brace to help Fulham seal qualification to the last 32 of the Europa League as Group E runners-up. In-form Zamora gave the Cottagers the lead with a neat finish from Bjorn Helge Riise’s cross on 42 minutes. He then doubled the advantage with a header from [...]
Spurs show fight December 16, 2009 TOTTENHAM (3) VS MAN CITY (0) TOTTENHAM reignited their charge for a top four spot after inflicting only a second defeat of the season on fellow Champions League aspirants Manchester City. Desperate to blot out the memory of Saturday’s shock home defeat by Wolves, Spurs came out fighting from the off and took a deserved [...]
Gunners let it slip December 16, 2009 BURNLEY (1) VS ARSENAL (1) ERRATIC Arsenal missed out on the chance to close to within three points of second-place Manchester United after being held by plucky Burnley. Buoyed by their victory at Liverpool on Sunday, the Gunners started brightly and took just seven minutes the break down their hosts – Cesc Fabregas popping up [...]
