China growth slows July 15, 2010 THE pace of growth in China slowed in the second quarter, official figures show. China’s economy grew by 10.3 per cent in the April to June quarter – below the 11.9 per cent growth rate during the first quarter of the year. The government has introduced a range of measures to cool down the economy. [...]
Glaxo facing £1.5bn legal bill over diabetes drug July 15, 2010 GlaxoSmithKline expects to record a legal charge of £1.57bn for the second quarter after settling the “substantial majority” of claims relating to its diabetes pill Avandia. The drugmaker said the charge would cover not only settlements for Avandia but also other long-standing legal cases, including an investigation into its former factory at Cidra in Puerto [...]
Mothercare sales slide in UK July 15, 2010 MOTHERCARE posted a bigger-than-expected drop in first-quarter sales in its main British market – but thrived in foreign markets. The mother and baby retailer, which has 1,115 stores in 52 countries but makes about three quarters of its revenue in Britain, said sales at UK stores open at least a year fell 4.1 per cent [...]
SuperGroup profit soars July 15, 2010 FASHION retailer SuperGroup’s full-year pre-tax profit soared to £22.46m from £7.59m last year. Group revenue for the 52 weeks ended May 2, 2010 was up 83.1 per cent to £139.4m from £76.14m in the comparable period. The surge has been fuelled by the company’s Superdry label which has been sported by a host of celebrities [...]
Experian revenue up seven per cent July 15, 2010 CREDIT-CHECKING company Experian has posted a seven per cent rise in revenue. It said the figures suggested that the UK-based company was seeing an improvement across most of its markets, The company indicated that its five per cent revenue growth in North America encapsulated its progress. However, revenue remains in the UK declined at actual [...]
Ocado reels as rival IPO fails July 14, 2010 OIL and gas group Fairfield Energy last night pulled its upcoming stock market flotation in a move that further undermines the chances of online grocer Ocado floating at a sky-high valuation of £1bn. Fairfield was hoping to raise £330m as part of its flotation but on Tuesday it became clear that the group’s advisers were [...]
LSE boss slams regulation July 14, 2010 LONDON Stock Exchange chief executive Xavier Rolet yesterday warned that uncertainties over the regulatory environment are crippling the City. “It is almost inhumane, the level of regulatory uncertainty financial services businesses are facing today,” Rolet told City A.M., adding that getting to grips with the ever-changing regulatory landscape “goes beyond the abilities of any rational [...]
Credit Suisse PCs searched July 14, 2010 CREDIT Suisse offices throughout Germany were searched by investigators yesterday as part of a crackdown on tax evaders. A search involving 13 offices and 150 tax officials focused on unnamed employees at the Swiss bank who may have helped clients evade taxes. “The searches won’t be finished by the end of today or perhaps not [...]
Dangers of psychological groupthink July 14, 2010 THERE is something strange about human psychology – or at least, a major flaw in the way we extrapolate trends based on a very limited amount of recent historical data. This is of major importance to the way we make predictions about the economy and the performance of individual companies. Whenever something goes badly wrong [...]
DLR strike dates decided July 14, 2010 COMMUTERS travelling into the City on the Dockland Light Railway (DLR) next week could face severe disruptions as trade union RMT yesterday announced strike dates for workers on the line. From 4am next Friday morning, DLR workers will walk off the job for three 24-hour periods, including 27 July and 6 August. RMT said the [...]
