Ofcom moves to cap BT’s wholesale prices July 5, 2012 TELECOMS giant BT could see its revenues suffer following yesterday’s proposal by Ofcom of price caps on its wholesale charges. The telecoms regulator wants to cap the fees BT charges for the lease of its telecom lines, which provide high-speed links for businesses, broadband providers and mobile services. The proposals follow a review by Ofcom, [...]
Airlines agree to axe confusing card fees after watchdog probe July 5, 2012 AIRLINES are to ditch hidden debit card fees next month following an investigation by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT). Twelve companies including Ryanair and Thomas Cook have pledged to declare any extra debit card charges in the headline price of a ticket, abolishing the practice of imposing surprise fees at the end of online [...]
Vodafone pay package backed by ABI with blue top approval July 5, 2012 VODAFONE’S pay package was yesterday classed an inoffensive “blue top” by the ABI, which recommended shareholders vote in favour of the remuneration report. Vittorio Colao, chief executive of Vodafone, was paid £3m in salary, bonus and benefit payments in 2011, a year in which Vodafone dished out a hefty £10.2bn to its investors and became [...]
EasyJet and Aer Lingus enjoy rise in low-cost air customers July 5, 2012 EASYJET carried almost a tenth more passengers in June compared to a year ago, figures out yesterday showed. The low-cost airline said it took 5.43m passengers last month, up 9.7 per cent on June 2011, while its load factor, a measure of how full its flights are, jumped 1.6 percentage points to 89.9 per cent. [...]
Babcock sees stable trading July 5, 2012 ENGINEERING support services group Babcock yesterday said it was trading in line with expectations, helped by cost-cutting and clients outsourcing more work. Babcock said that its order book was stable at around £13bn. Meanwhile 80 per cent of revenue expected in 2012/2013 is already contracted, it said. It added that it was pursuing new contracts [...]
LONDON 2012 IMAGE OF THE WEEK July 5, 2012 THE Olympic canoe slalom course at the Lee Valley White Water Centre was the focus of attention this week, as athletes from 30 national teams tested the venue. Built on a 10,000 square metre lake, the slalom pumps out 13 cubic metres of water each second. Between now and the start of the Olympics, City [...]
RBS withdraws from Tibor panel July 5, 2012 RBS yesterday said it had withdrawn from the panels that set Tibor – the Japanese equivalent of Libor. RBS said the move was part of a strategic decision taken by chief executive Stephen Hester to rationalise its markets business. Despite the move, RBS said that it “remained committed” to the Japanese market.
Ticket price rises boost Cineworld July 5, 2012 Cineworld yesterday reported a 1.1 per cent rise in first-half revenues, boosted by a 4.1 per cent growth in box office income due to ticket price increases despite lower sales. Other income fell 18.7 per cent due to lower sales of 3D glasses, the booking fee removal and reduced ad revenues.
McBride trading hitting forecasts July 5, 2012 McBride said yesterday it expects its profit for the year just ended to hit forecasts. The provider of private label household and personal care products forecast full-year revenue growth of one per cent. Net debt at the end of the year should be in line with the board’s expectations at around £82m, it said in [...]
Westfield Group raises £450m July 5, 2012 Westfield Group, which owns London’s Shepherd’s Bush and Stratford shopping centres, yesterday raised £450m with the issuance of a 10-year sterling bond. The Australian firm is expected to use part of the money raised to pay down some of its UK debts, as well as fund new investments.