Murray hopes of home triumph smothered at O2 as Djokovic digs deep in epic contest November 7, 2012 BRITAIN’S Andy Murray rued missed chances after his titanic tussle with world No1 Novak Djokovic left him one defeat away from a premature exit from the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London yesterday. Murray, who beat Djokovic in an epic US Open final to win his maiden grand slam earlier this year, took the [...]
BDO and PKF in talks for audit merger deal November 7, 2012 BDO and PKF are in advanced talks to merge their UK operations, the accountancy and advisory firms revealed yesterday. A tie-up, which is expected to take place early next year, would give the group extra firepower to compete with Grant Thornton for mid-market audit and business advisory clients. The firms said the enlarged company would [...]
Mobile traffic drives up sales at Shop Direct November 7, 2012 SHOP DIRECT, the home-shopping group owned by the billionaire Barclay brothers, yesterday said sales through mobile devices such as the ipad and smart phones helped boost annual sales. The company behind Littlewoods, isme and very.co.uk reported that overall sales grew 0.4 per cent to £1.6bn in the year to 30 June. Online sales grew by [...]
FTSE 100 up on Obama victory November 7, 2012 US President Barack Obama’s victory pushed up the blue chip index in early trading. His win is expected to mark the continuation of loose monetary policy and low interest rates at the Federal Reserve. Miners and engineering firms led the FTSE All-Share higher, with boiler and valve maker Spirax-Sarco adding 6.76 per cent in early [...]
IHG seeks new bidders for its New York hotel November 6, 2012 INTERCONTINENTAL Hotels group said it is seeking new bids for its $300m (£187m) Barclay Hotel in Manhattan after exclusive talks with a prospective buyer, believed to be Qatari hotel owner Ghanim Bin Saad Al Saad, came to a halt. “We are still talking to the original interested party but we have decided not to do [...]
FTSE 100 edges up as investors bide time before US election November 6, 2012 The leading share index was up this morning on a wave of corporate earnings releases, although trading was expected to be subdued as investors bided time before the closely-fought US election today. G4S and Marks & Spencer were risers on the FTSE 100 this morning, as they released positive trading updates. On the FTSE All-Share, [...]
What the other papers say this morning November 5, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES Italian police seize castle in tax probe Italian police have confiscated €65m of assets, including a 15th century castle, from the Marzotto family for suspected tax evasion connected to the 2007 sale of the Valentino fashion brand. The Marzottos are under investigation over the €2.6bn sale of Valentino and its Hugo Boss subsidiary [...]
Top banks call for earlier start for ring-fence November 5, 2012 THE QUICKER politicians finalise and introduce new regulations, the quicker banks will be able to implement them and move on with stabilising the industry, the chairman of HSBC and chief executive of Barclays said yesterday. The Financial Services Bill is currently going through parliament, covering areas including the ring-fencing of retail and investment banking operations, [...]
UK corporate borrowing hits five-year high November 5, 2012 UK FIRMS are borrowing more money from investors than at any other time since the financial crisis, a study out yesterday showed, as companies increasingly turn to the bond markets to access credit. UK corporate debt issuances have soared to $85.2bn (£53.4bn) so far this year, a record high and a 70 per cent increase [...]
FTSE falls on uncertainty over US election and fall in price of copper November 5, 2012 BRITISH blue-chip firms fell yesterday as investors eased back on risky plays ahead of US elections, with miners among the top fallers as they continued to suffer from the low price of copper. At the close, the FTSE 100 was down 29.490 points, or 0.5 per cent, at 5,839.06, in thin trading volumes of 70 [...]