St Lucia’s most spectacular retreat is taking luxury to new levels August 2, 2009 ONE OF THE remaining signs of St Lucia’s colonial past (and Commonwealth present) is the fact that, by law, the first 40 feet inland of every stretch of coastline belongs to the Queen. That doesn’t mean sunbathing is restricted to Her Maj and Philip, should they deign to drop anchor in these parts, but it [...]
CITY VIEWS: SHOULD BRITISH AIRWAYS CHARGE FOR IN-FLIGHT MEALS? July 29, 2009 ABI COOPER LAING O’ROURKE“Yes, I think it will affect the number of people who fly with them. I suppose it does depend on the journey length, however, as budget airlines already charge for in-flight meals. Perhaps passengers used to short-haul flights with these airlines won’t mind.” ZAIN HIRANI STANDARD BANK“I think it’s a small thing [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 29, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES CATTLES’ NON-EXECS WIN TEPID SUPPORTLong-suffering investors in cattles, whose shares have been suspended since April, protested yesterday against the re-election of two non-executive directors at the subprime lender’s annual meeting. About a tenth of investors voted against the re-election of David Haxby, senior independent director who has been with the board since 1999, [...]
Losses triple at BAA as its traffic drops July 29, 2009 AIRPORT operator BAA yesterday said losses at its London airports had more than tripled to £545.7m in the first half of the year. Exceptional items pushed the company into the red, but BAA said its underlying earnings were up 28 per cent to £469.9m. The airport operator took a hit from finance costs linked to [...]
BA and Unite talks fail July 23, 2009 TALKS between British Airways and union Unite over cost savings and redundancies broke down last night. The two sides, battling over an agreement to cut thousands of jobs and freeze pay, must now abide by a 14-day cooling off period, during which there is no communication between them. BA wants staff to accept a two-year [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS July 21, 2009 CABLE & WIRELESSCable & Wireless maintained guidance at both division and group levels in its first-quarter interim management statement, and Royal Bank of Scotland still considers the equity story one of the most compelling of European telecoms companies. The broker has a “buy” recommendation on the stock, with a target price of 200p. AUTONOMYInvestec believes [...]
FTSE enjoys best run in four years July 21, 2009 THE FTSE 100 has had its best run in four years after companies around the world delivered better-than-expected results. The index of top-rated companies ended a seventh day of rises one per cent higher at 4481.17. It is the best winning streak since July 2005, with daily increases bringing the FTSE 100 up 8.7 per [...]
Swine flu could hit UK economy in 2009 July 20, 2009 INCREASED nervousness about the damaging effects of a swine flu pandemic briefly shook travel stocks yesterday, after the the respected Ernst & Young (E&Y) Item Club warned that the virus could drag Britain’s economy into its worst recession since the early 1930s. The influential think tank said a pandemic reaching 100,000 cases a day by [...]
Oh I do like to be beside the seaside (with billionaires) July 19, 2009 IT’S mid-morning, and having got a crack-of-dawn BA flight from London City Airport, I am now in a helicopter flying from Nice to Monte Carlo. Out of the window, the warm sunshine and blue sea provide a stunning backdrop to the hotels and villas carved out of the white rocks. As a helicopter virgin I [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 16, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES CLARKE WARNS CAMERON NOT TO CHALLENGE ‘PRO-BUSINESS’ STANCEKen Clarke, the outspoken former Conservative chancellor, has warned David Cameron not to translate his “standing up to big business” rhetoric into policies in government. However, the shadow business secretary said he “overwhelmingly approved” of Cameron’s transformation of the Tory party. “So long as Mr Cameron [...]