NEW ROLE FOR BAZALGETTE June 11, 2009 PETER Bazalgette, the man behind shows such as Big Brother and Ready, Steady, Cook, was appointed as a non-executive director of the Critical Investment Group (CIG) yesteday, a new investment vehicle aimed at acquiring business-to-business media companies in the UK and overseas, which is due to be listed on AIM on 25 June.
Home Retail sales enjoy a sunshine lift June 11, 2009 HOME Retail Group yesterday brought some cheer to the market after its Homebase chain reported its first positive sales figures in two years. The DIY chain yesterday posted a 3.8 per cent increase in like-for-like sales for the 13 weeks to 30 May, beating market expectations. Homebase said total sales, which include those from new [...]
BlackRock on verge of BGI deal June 11, 2009 MONEY manager BlackRock’s $13bn (£7.8bn) bid to take over Barclays Global Investors (BGI) could be wrapped up as early as today, with advisers working around the clock to put the final seal on the tie-up. The US firm will swallow BGI in a cash-plus-shares deal, giving Barclays a 20 per cent stake in what will [...]
Colly laments batting as sad England crash June 11, 2009 CAPTAIN Paul Collingwood berated England’s poor batting performance as South Africa waltzed to a comfortable victory in their Super Eights opener at Trent Bridge. England slumped to their lowest Twenty20 international total of 111, leaving the Proteas with the simple task of picking off a seven-wicket win. Collingwood hit 19 off as many balls to [...]
IS IT SUNNY SIDE UP FOR HOME RETAIL? June 11, 2009 JOHN STEVENSON KBC PEEL HUNT“Home Retail Group’s first quarter trading update has seen a notable boost to seasonal lines as Homebase at last delivers like-for-like sales growth. Argos sales were also ahead of expectations, although margins remains under pressure. We note a strong performance in toys, no doubt benefiting from the demise of Woolworths, a [...]
Deripaska’s paper trouble June 11, 2009 Russian tycoon Oleg Deripaska yesterday invited two government ministers to join the board of a troubled Russian paper mill he controls after he was reprimanded by the Prime Minister for his management of another plant. Deripaska also owned the loss-making Birmingham-based vanmaker LDV, which went into administration earlier this month after failing to find a [...]
De La Rue wins passport deal June 11, 2009 Banknote printer De La Rue has won preferred bidder status for a 10-year contract with the Home Office’s Identity and Passport Service to produce biometric passports in a deal worth £400m. The company already produces passports for more than 50 national governments around the world and also makes UK emergency travel documents.
Lord Jones warns on spending June 11, 2009 Former CBI director general and UK trade minister Lord Digby Jones yesterday called for “moral courage” in the UK public sector to remedy years of inefficiency in public service delivery, and to uphold the UK’s standing as a global economic leader and vital trading partner. He was speaking to the sixth annual Harvey Nash-sponsored business [...]
Lions coach: We’ll be better prepared than Springboks June 11, 2009 BRITISH and Irish Lions coach Warren Gatland has taunted South Africa by saying he expects his team to be in better shape than the Springboks come the first Test. The Lions extended their uneaten tour run to four matches with a 39-3 victory over Natal Sharks on Wednesday and will have played six games before [...]
Moores: Flintoff is on track for Ashes return June 11, 2009 LANCASHIRE coach Peter Moores believes Andrew Flintoff is on track to be fit to play in the Ashes after the England all-rounder made a miraculous return from injury yesterday. Playing his first County match for six weeks since undergoing knee surgery, Flintoff had Durham opener Michael Di Venuto caught behind off only his second ball [...]
