HOT TUNA GOES FISHING August 13, 2009 SURFWEAR fashion brand Hot Tuna, which recently completed a restructuring to help it weather the retail downturn, said yesterday it had raised £1.1m through a share placing to fund expansion into new markets. Hot Tuna also said it had appointed executive director Geoff O’Connell, a four-year veteran of the company, as its new chief executive.
Tomkins set for further job cuts August 13, 2009 Engineering group Tomkins reported better-than-expected first-half adjusted operating profit yesterday and said deep cost cuts should help it through an uncertain business climate. The company said it would cut another 1,600 jobs by year-end after 3,900 cuts in the first half, and that it was on track to produce annual savings of $150m (£90.4m) by [...]
Ford to make more cars in US August 13, 2009 Carmaker Ford said yesterday it planned to build more of its popular Focus and Escape vehicles this quarter, in order to meet increasing demand from the US government’s “cash for clunkers” programme. The company now expects to produce 495,000 vehicles in the third quarter, up two per cent from its prior forecast of 485,000. The [...]
Hyundai boosted by scrappage August 13, 2009 Hyundai expects to boost its full-year US car sales, it said yesterday, reversing a decline in the first seven months. The carmaker has been helped out by the US government’s trade-in scrap scheme. The clunkers programme helped South Korea’s biggest carmaker boost July sales by 12 per cent, and now accounts for much as 40 [...]
Paulson gambles on US banking revival August 13, 2009 HIGH-PROFILE hedge fund manager John Paulson has taken a bet of more than $2.5bn (£1.5bn) on the recovery of US banks, handing a vote of confidence to a beleaguered Wall Street. Regulatory filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) show that Paulson bought 168m shares in Bank of America (BoA) during the second [...]
The Pru raises its dividend as boss departs August 13, 2009 INSURER Prudential outpaced its rivals yesterday when it raised its interim dividend and reported a smaller-than-expected drop in first-half profit. The UK’s largest insurer said its operating profit fell eight per cent to £1.25bn on the widely recognised European embedded value measure (EEV) – which tracks future earnings from life insurance policies – compared to [...]
CITY VIEWS: WAS THE FSA’S CLIMB DOWN ON BONUSES THE ONLY SENSIBLE OPTION? August 13, 2009 ADAM MITCHELL LLOYD’S SYNDICATE“No. The FSA’s backtrack on bonus regulation wasn’t necessary. In fact, they should be firmer in their monitoring. Remuneration policies need overseeing, and the FSA and the government should both take responsibility to see that bonuses don’t get out of hand.” BEN LAWLOR ASSET MANAGEMENT“We’re in a free market, so regulation should [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: HAS PRUDENTIAL MET WITH YOUR EXPECTATIONS? August 13, 2009 BARRIE CORNES PANMURE GORDONPrudential has delivered interim results that were well above the top end of the range of forecasts, both on an EEV and an IFRS basis. The capital position is robust, with Insurance Group Directive surplus at £3bn at 31 July. These are good figures, and have benefited from capital preservation and focus [...]
Autumn swine flu vaccinations August 13, 2009 Britain’s swine flu vaccination programme is to start in October for at-risk groups, chief medical officer Liam Donaldson said yesterday, with most vaccines coming from drugs firm GlaxoSmithKline. A first batch of 300,000 vaccines will arrive this month with 54.6m expected by December, Donaldson said, adding that exact supply levels would depend on the manufacturers.
Treasury stability hire pulls out August 13, 2009 The Treasury has been forced back to square one in its bid to appoint an executive overseeing the Bank of England’s efforts to factor financial stability into policy. The Treasury re-advertised for the non-executive director role yesterday, after its mystery top choice pulled out at the eleventh hour. Her Majesty the Queen will make the [...]
