Barclays was at centre of tax loophole clampdown February 28, 2012 Barclays said it was the bank at the centre of a clampdown by Britain on two tax avoidance schemes that the government said would close loopholes and raise more than £500m in tax. Barclays said it notified Britain’s tax office about its plan to buy back its own bonds, on which it and other banks [...]
£67,700,000,000: The amount of tax paid by Britain’s top 100 companies last year February 27, 2012 THE TAXMAN took an extra £8.3bn from top UK companies in the last fiscal year, with big firms contributing 14 per cent more compared to the previous year. In total, the so-called Hundred Group of businesses paid an eye-watering £67.7bn in tax in the year to March 2011, according to data released by PwC this [...]
Barclays hit by crackdown February 27, 2012 BARCLAYS has been targeted by the government’s closure of an “aggressive” tax avoidance scheme, costing it around £500m. The scheme shut by HMRC saw banks buy back their debt at a lower price than they had sold it, before avoiding corporation tax on the profit. The government is shutting down that scheme retrospectively, hitting any [...]
Remember UK Plc’s vast contribution February 27, 2012 IT is sometimes argued, including by government advisers, that the state should promote small firms above large ones. These people even argue that small, insurgent entrepreneurs are morally superior to larger, more bureaucratic multinationals. I disagree, but I can see where they are coming from: I too would much rather work for a small, nimble, [...]
Transocean books $1bn Gulf charge as its losses worsen February 27, 2012 TRANSOCEAN took a $1bn (£632m) charge related to the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill yesterday, the clearest indication yet that the contract driller is preparing to settle the case. Shares of Transocean, owner of the world’s largest offshore drilling fleet, rose five per cent on its solid quarterly results, and the prospect of closing [...]
Hoare Govett’s larger clients look poachable February 27, 2012 JEFFERIES Group, the global investment firm that has picked up the Hoare Govett name and around 50 of its remaining employees, has done a good job in hanging on to many of the firm’s stars. So, corporate advisers like Paul Nicholls and Chris Zeal have made the move across to the new firm, as has [...]
FTSE slips as oil price fears take toll February 27, 2012 THE FTSE edged down in early trading as surging oil prices cast a shadow over global growth and a G20 meeting failed to provide reassurance about international help to crisis-struck Europe. Rising tensions between Iran and the West are triggering rapid oil price rises as supply fears grow. Brent Crude marginally dropped in price this [...]
CPP future still at risk as banks withdraw backing February 26, 2012 TROUBLED credit card insurer CPP faces the loss of its banking facilities unless it can reassure lenders that its business is secure. Barclays, Santander and Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) are considering whether to withdraw financial backing from the York-based firm when the existing arrangement ends next year. The firm currently has borrowings of around [...]
Which asset is the true safe haven? GOLD OR SHARES February 26, 2012 TOM WINNIFRITH WE ARE entering an inflationary environment. This is the 1970s all over again. Across the globe governments are relaxing monetary policy. In China and India this is an attempt to keep their economies growing rapidly. In the West it is a desperate attempt to breathe life into economies which face structural issues no-one [...]
THE WEEK AHEAD February 26, 2012 Today A diverse group of FTSE 100 reporters will kick off a busy week in the corporate calendar this morning, with banking giant HSBC likely to be top of many investors’ watch list. Analysts are expecting the bank’s geographical diversity to offset any potential weakness in it investment banking division, with profits expected to hit [...]