Put colour back in your pocket July 1, 2010 SINCE men everywhere fell under the spell of Don Draper, a neat white strip in the breast pocket has been a de rigueur suit accessory. It helped too that the crisp lines and white on grey tones suited fashion’s move towards sober asceticism. But hey, summer’s here, the sun’s out, and such sombre restraint is [...]
Fright entertainment July 1, 2010 Jeremy Dyson and Andy Nyman may just have created the Blair Witch Project of theatre. Not simply because their show, Ghost Stories, is liable to turn even the most hardened horror nut into a gibbering wreck – though by many accounts it will – but because, like Blair Witch, having been created on a wing [...]
Evergreen hero says good-bye in comic style July 1, 2010 Film SHREK FOREVER AFTER Cert: U The fourth and final instalment of the popular Shrek franchise sees everyone’s favourite Scottish cartoon ogre return for what’s supposedly the final chapter (predictably upgraded to 3D). Like many who saw the third installment, Shrek (voiced as ever by Mike Myers) has grown pretty bored. Bogged down by both [...]
Manufacturing rebound slows July 1, 2010 A REBOUND in manufacturing slowed in June from the previous month’s 15-year high as export order growth all but ran out of steam, a survey has showed. However, employment, a lagging indicator, rose at its fastest pace since February 1995 as companies added staff to keep up with rising production. The Markit/Chartered Institute of Purchasing [...]
European shares slide after weak China data July 1, 2010 European shares tumbled in early trade – retreating for the seventh time in eight sessions, after tepid Chinese macro data raised concerns about the global recovery. The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down 1.2 percent at 981.94 points, while Euro STOXX 50, the euro zone’s blue chip index, fell 1.5 percent at [...]
BT announces charges for Sky Sports July 1, 2010 BT has announced it will charge customers £16.99 a month for both Sky Sports 1 and Sky Sports 2, or £11.99 for just one of the channels. The packages will be available on month-by-month contracts. BT and Sky signed a deal to allow BT Vision customers to watch the two sports channels, they revealed earlier [...]
Debenhams sees sales dip July 1, 2010 DEBENHAMS has posted a fall in underlying third-quarter sales but said it was winning market share and its gross margins were rising. Sales at stores open over a year fell 0.4 percent in the 42 weeks to 19 June. Debenhams, with about 160 stores in Britain and Ireland and more than 50 franchised outlets overseas, [...]
Barclays in Japanese wealth management deal July 1, 2010 UK banking giant Barclays and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group said they would launch a wealth management joint venture in Japan, targeting individuals with at least 500 million yen (£3.8m) to invest. Japan’s third-largest bank by assets acquired a two per cent stake in Barclays for about $1bn in 2008 and the two have been preparing [...]
Funds to be hit by bonus rules June 30, 2010 Cash bonuses to be capped at 30 per cent Hedgies and investment firms fall into EU’s net Politicians say clamp down will end risk-taking HEDGE funds and asset managers will be caught in the tough crackdown on bankers’ bonuses put forward by European Union politicians and member states last night. In the harshest measures yet [...]
Barclays warns on deals June 30, 2010 BRITISH titan Barclays yesterday warned of a slowdown in investment banking activity in the past two months, suggesting wilting confidence in corporate boardrooms is impacting on dealmaking revenues. Barclays finance director Chris Lucas told an analyst conference investment banking market conditions in May and June were “softer” than those seen in the first quarter, when [...]
