Afren in boost from Nigeria and Kurdistan May 15, 2012 OIL explorer Afren said yesterday its profits in the first quarter had jumped thanks to new finds. The company said it had been buoyed by discoveries in Nigeria and Kurdistan. Afren posted pre-tax profits of £143.2m compared with £2m in the first quarter of 2011. The FTSE 250 explorer reported net production of 41,308 barrels [...]
Nuclear project on the hunt for new backers May 15, 2012 ENERGY minister Charles Hendry said yesterday that RWE and E.ON’s British nuclear joint venture, Horizon, needs to find new investors if it is to survive because its existing backers will not stump up more cash. Britain’s nuclear future was thrown into doubt in March when RWE and E.ON, under pressure from their home country’s decision [...]
ARCELORMITTAL KAZAKH UNIT HIT BY INFERNO May 15, 2012 ARCELORMITTAL has reduced production at the main steelmaking unit of its plant in Kazakhstan after a fire killed two people yesterday, the company’s local unit said. ArcelorMittal Temirtau, the Kazakh unit of the firm run by billionaire Lakshmi Mittal, said the fire had been contained after burning for more than three hours.
Exports to the EU dip but UK deficit shrinks May 15, 2012 EXPORTS increased in March, official data showed yesterday, as UK trade with non-EU countries boomed. The trade deficit in goods and services narrowed to £2.7bn in the month, down from £2.9bn in February the Office for National Statistics reported. Services exports rose £0.2bn to £15.5bn while imports held at £9.6bn, leaving a surplus of £5.8bn. [...]
Independent Scotland could see an 11 per cent budget gap May 15, 2012 AN INDEPENDENT Scottish state would inherit a national debt of up to 70 per cent of its GDP, and would expect to face a dangerously high annual deficit, an expert witness warned a House of Lords committee yesterday. If the debt is divided by population, the country would face a debt of £64-£83bn, Sterling University [...]
G20 must focus on youth jobs, says the OECD May 15, 2012 LABOUR ministers from the G20 must focus on solving mass unemployment among young people, the Organisation for Co-operation and Development (OECD) said yesterday. Senior government officials are meeting in the Mexican city of Guadalajara tomorrow and already face protests from young trade unionists over growing international joblessness. And now the Paris-based think tank has added [...]
Renishaw says dip in profit is short-term blip May 15, 2012 PRECISION engineering firm Renishaw said its quarterly profit fell 15 per cent on continued investment in staff and infrastructure, but the company expects to overcome the shortfall and grow profits for the year. The company, which makes and sells precision and inspection products for the healthcare and metrology industries, said activity in April was ahead [...]
WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS May 15, 2012 Bank of Ireland Adrian Olsen has been appointed as Bank of Ireland’s new head of business banking in the UK. He has been with the bank for 12 years as a managing director and head of global project finance for its UK corporate banking division. Olsen has also previously held senior positions at Dresdner Kleinwort [...]
BEST of the BROKERS May 15, 2012 BT GROUP Following fourth quarter results, Espirito Santo has upgraded the telecom group from “sell” to :neutral” and ups its target price from 180p to 210p. The broker sees opportunities for cost cutting that should help reduce pressure on revenue and help Ebitda growth for 2012-13. It also expects BT Retail to be able to [...]
Miners help extend FTSE 100 losses as Greek talks fail May 15, 2012 BRITAIN’S top shares extended losses yesterday, led by the mining sector as the cloud looming over the Eurozone darkened after Greek politicians failed to form a government, denting sentiment and the outlook for global growth. London’s blue chip index fell 0.5 per cent to 5,437.62, adding to the previous session’s two per cent drop, with [...]
