LUXURY CAR SALES ON THE SKIDS October 31, 2011 SHARES in HR Owen, the luxury car dealer, shed 5.19 per cent yesterday, after it issued a profit warning – just weeks after its chief executive Andy Duncan quit. HR Owen said “demand conditions in the luxury car market have deteriorated in recent weeks” and that it now expected to post a “small loss” the second [...]
Mondi eyes more cost cuts October 31, 2011 Paper maker Mondi said yesterday it plans more cost cuts as the sector struggles to recover from a slump caused by weak demand and overcapacity, exacerbated by a slowdown in the global economy. Mondi, which also said its third-quarter underlying profit was higher than a year earlier, added that the weak economy was putting moderate [...]
Picton drops Invista trust bid October 31, 2011 Picton yesterday dropped its plans to take over the Invista Foundation Property Trust (IFPT) after failing to agree a deal with the Invista Foundation board. The trust, which has around £145m of assets under management, will now be managed by Schroders, having ended its agreement with Invista Real Estate Management. Picton said it would focus [...]
GTL agrees to £32m takeover October 31, 2011 GTL Resources, the owner of an ethanol and bio-refining company, has agreed to a £32m cash offer from marine firm Siem Kapital and fund manager North Atlantic Value (NAV), the companies said yesterday. Siem and NAV will pay one pound a share for GTL, which produces over one million gallons of ethanol per year through [...]
Stats hint at a drop in UK house prices October 31, 2011 MORTGAGE lending slipped for the second straight month in September, the Bank of England revealed yesterday, while a separate study released this morning exposes dwindling confidence in the likelihood of house prices holding up. More people expect house prices to fall over the next year than those expecting any rise, a survey by the Halifax [...]
Joblessness up in Eurozone October 31, 2011 UNEMPLOYMENT has spiked across the troubled Eurozone, while rising inflation is adding to the single currency area’s woes, official data showed yesterday. And yet another turbulent day in Italy suggested that the debt crisis has not yet been cured by the agreements announced by European leaders last week. “Looking ahead, the real test for the [...]
Borrowing on plastic may have driven spend spree October 31, 2011 CREDIT card balances and other forms of unsecured lending climbed to a seven-month high in September, according to Bank of England data released yesterday. Unsecured lending rose by a bigger-than-expected £600m in the month — its highest since February. Credit card lending accounted for one third of the increase in unsecured lending, which coincided with [...]
Analysts remain sceptical after Japan tries yet again to weigh down the yen October 31, 2011 JAPAN sold the yen for the second time in less than three months yesterday, after it hit another record high against the dollar. Japanese authorities said it intervened to counter excessive speculation that was hurting the world’s number three economy. Yet analysts remained sceptical of the effectiveness of the move, with some suggesting that it [...]
Pay gap keeps women’s pension pots below men’s October 31, 2011 WOMEN are increasingly saving towards their retirements, data revealed today – yet the pay gap between the sexes means that men continue to enjoy larger pension pots. Half of all surveyed women are saving “adequately” towards their pension pots, Scottish Widows said – a seven year high, and up from 43 per cent last year. [...]
WILL HOUSE PRICES RECOVER? October 31, 2011 SIMON OGILVIE-HARRIS | CHAVIN JEWELLERY “House prices are going down. The economy is bad and there is less credit in the system. If there is less credit then less people will buy, and they are being more frugal and cautious in investing anyway at the minute.” NIA TRINH | EUROPEAN LOAN TRADING “Prices are either [...]
