Airline’s ambitions to join the FTSE 100 sped Rake’s departure January 27, 2013 AT first sight, the departure of Sir Michael Rake as EasyJet chairman is a victory for Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, the company’s founder turned thorn-in-its-side. Sir Stelios sought Sir Michael’s removal last summer, following the BT chairman’s appointment to deputy chairman at Barclays, arguing overcommitment. However, despite public criticism by EasyJet’s largest shareholder, Sir Michael held [...]
Lords to quiz Ofcom chief exec January 27, 2013 Ofcom’s plans for media regulation could be revealed tomorrow as the regulator’s chief executive Ed Richards is grilled in the House of Lords. The Communications Committee will quiz Richards as part of an inquiry into media convergence, which has become an increasing issue with BSkyB selling internet connections and BT and Virgin Media entering the [...]
Best of the Brokers January 27, 2013 BSKYB Peel Hunt rates the broadcasting group “hold” with a target of 845p ahead of first half results due on Thursday. The broker expects BSkyB to report 3.4 per cent revenue growth to £3.45bn and flat operating profit of £577m as a result of higher programming costs. Longer term, Peel Hunt has concerns about growing [...]
UK firms set for busy week of trading reports January 27, 2013 THE UK’s corporate calendar is packed this week as many of Britain’s biggest companies deliver their results before the month’s end. Both AstraZeneca and Royal Dutch Shell are set to give full-year results on Thursday, while British Sky Broadcasting, Haynes Publishing and Rank Group will give interim reports. Trading announcements are also expected that day [...]
4G bidding war starts as Ofcom opens auction January 23, 2013 BIDDING for the UK’s 4G mobile airwaves kicked off yesterday, with communications watchdog Ofcom hosting an auction that is expected to hand George Osborne a multi-billion pound windfall. Seven parties are now vying for a slice of spectrum that will enable them to deliver the next generation of mobile internet, promising speeds around 10 times [...]
Rio Tinto drags FTSE 100 down January 17, 2013 Mining giant Rio Tinto weighed heavily on the FTSE 100 this morning, trading down around 3.5 per cent. This morning it said chief executive Tom Albanese would step down following a $14bn impairment charge relating to several acquisitions. Charles Gibson, head of mining at Edison Investment Research, said this morning: “When a company writes off [...]
What the other papers say this morning January 15, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Spain asks Germany to boost growth Mariano Rajoy has called on Germany and other creditor countries in the Eurozone to do more to stimulate growth, arguing that a switch to a more expansionary policy would boost economic recovery across the single currency area. “I think that in this moment, when there is a [...]
Burberry tops FTSE 100 January 15, 2013 The leading share index was modestly higher in early deals, as Burberry was the star performer following an upbeat trading statement. The British luxury brand soared 5.2 per cent on the FTSE 100 this morning, as investors were cheered by its latest trading statement. Revenue over the third quarter jumped nine per cent, thanks to [...]
BT app targets mobile calls January 14, 2013 BT has launched a challenge to mobile phone operators, launching a smartphone service that allows phone calls over the internet. SmartTalk, which the telecoms firm announced yesterday, allows BT customers to make calls which are then charged to their landline account, as if the calls were from a home phone. But the launch of the [...]
Rapid responses January 7, 2013 Broadband policy [Re: Think tank slams plan to splash out on UK broadband arms race, yesterday] This is an essential look at the UK’s costly and ineffective broadband policies. But it fails to recommend immediate policy changes that would result in much-needed, competition for fixed line and mobile internet access. Allowing wholesale internet service providers [...]