CITY VIEWS: HOW DO YOU WATCH TV? November 22, 2011 MICHAEL DACOSTA | ABERDEEN AM “Personally I find that I am too busy to watch television, but when I am interested in a programme or movie I find that Sky+ is the easiest to use. Adverts can be very annoying so fast forwarding through them is great.” GARY FREDSON | HOMEMAKERS NATIONWIDE “I like to [...]
Woodford set for showdown at Olympus HQ November 22, 2011 OLYMPUS investors are hopeful that former boss Michael Woodford could return to lead a clean-up of the Japanese company after he agreed to return to its headquarters for the first time since he was axed. Woodford is set to attend a board meeting on Friday, although it remains to be seen whether he will meet [...]
Most smartphone users not keen to buy Nokia November 22, 2011 THE latest wave of the YouGov Smartphone Mobile Internet Experience (SMIX) report has some chilling news for Nokia, as the once dominant Finnish provider has seen its share of expected next smartphone purchase (ie the phone that current smartphone users expect to buy next) drop to four per cent. This compares to Apple on 41 [...]
UK’s national debt rises but pace slows November 22, 2011 THE UK’S national debt increased again in October, but at a slowing rate, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed yesterday. Borrowing fell to £6.5bn, down from £12.96bn in September and from £7.72bn in October 2010. Net debt, excluding financial interventions stands at 62.3 per cent of GDP, down from 62.6 per cent in September. [...]
Home ownership to slide says Bank’s David Miles November 22, 2011 FIRST-TIME buyers are taking longer to save for large deposits, and so the number of owner-occupiers is set to fall, David Miles from the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee said in a speech yesterday. The transition to a society with fewer homeowners will be painful, he warned, but could have long-term benefits to the [...]
Low retail pay awards drag salaries down November 22, 2011 LOW pay awards in the private services sector dragged down average remuneration settlements in the three months to October, figures out today from IDSpay.co.uk claimed. The minimum wage rose by 2.5 per cent in the month, but the report indicates many employers were not able to match that rise for other workers, thanks to low [...]
JOE LEWIS CLAN BEARS HIS FOURTH GENERATION November 22, 2011 The Capitalist is pleased to reveal that Joe Lewis’s first great-granddaughter has arrived into the world. The name of the currency billionaire’s new clan member is Charlotte, born in London to Joanna, the daughter of Lewis’s daughter Vivienne Silverton, who runs the family’s Isleworth Foundation. Lewis scuttled back to the Bahamas shortly after Charlotte arrived [...]
Big Yellow sees rise in storage earnings November 22, 2011 SELF-STORAGE firm Big Yellow Group expects 15-20 per cent earnings growth for the year on continued demand for its stores from London and the south east, its chief executive said yesterday. The British company, which helps people and businesses store merchandise, goods, equipment and furniture while moving homes and offices, also expects higher demand from [...]
Frontline teeters on the brink as global oil tanker industry struggles to survive November 22, 2011 FRONTLINE, the global oil tanker industry’s top independent player, warned it would need to restructure to survive tough times, and said the wider sector was teetering on the brink as it battled overcapacity and weak demand. The Norwegian firm, an industry bellwether, warned yesterday that charter rates this quarter would stay well below break-even levels [...]
Netflix sells $400m stock to boost funds November 22, 2011 NETFLIX, the US video rental company, has sold $400m (£255m) in stock and convertible bonds to boost its war chest. The move comes after a difficult three months that saw the company’s shares fall more than 70 per cent. The capital raising is split into two parts: selling convertible debt to long-time backer Technology Crossover [...]
