FUND MANAGER OF THE YEAR July 30, 2012 Our fund manager of the year award, sponsored by S&P Capital IQ, will go to a company or individual who has demonstrated strong performance or has taken a headline-grabbing stance during a high-profile corporate issue. Well-judged deals against a complex economic backdrop, a commitment to shareholder activism or a canny ability to weather the near-constant [...]
Travis Perkins profits washed out by weather July 26, 2012 BUILDERS’ MERCHANT Travis Perkins blamed the unseasonably wet weather for stalling construction activity in the first half of the year and wiping £10m off profits. The company, which owns brands such as City Plumbing and Tile Giant, said revenues fell 0.7 per cent to £2.4bn on a like-for-like basis, with “exceptional” bad weather impacting its [...]
First signs that foreign investors are losing trust in Britain July 24, 2012 WITH the Eurozone back in crisis, it is tempting to assume that Britain will be fine, that we don’t share the problems plaguing much of the continent. Such complacency would be a mistake. As an intriguing note from Credit Agricole points out, there are growing signs that investors are losing confidence in sterling’s status as [...]
US corporate results round-up July 23, 2012 Slowing economy hurts McDonald’s FAST-FOOD chain McDonald’s reported lower than expected quarterly profit yesterday, hurt by a slowing global economy and the impact of a stronger dollar. The company said that net income fell 4.5 per cent to $1.35bn (£870m), and the impact of the stronger dollar ate into earnings in the latest quarter, while [...]
Wet weather leads to drought for revenue growth for Britvic July 19, 2012 THE SUMMER washout has dampened sales of soft drinks, Britvic complained yesterday as it reported a deluge of disappointing figures. Britvic’s revenues dropped 7.6 per cent in the quarter, hurt by a currency impact as well as falling sales. The firm was last month forced to recall its Fruit Shoot drinks after a choking scare [...]
Sclerotic jobs figures put the economy off-limits for Obama’s campaign July 11, 2012 THE US economy is still stumbling, creating a severe problem for President Barack Obama’s hopes for re-election in November. In June, the private sector created an abysmal 80,000 new jobs. Unemployment remains high at 8.2 per cent, and there’s little prospect of it dropping any time soon. With 117 days to election day, America’s ongoing [...]
FSA had warned Barclays of aggressive behaviour July 10, 2012 REGULATORS warned Barclays bank about its “aggressive” interpretation of market rules just four months before it was hit with a £290m fine for abusing the Libor interest rate, it was revealed yesterday. Lord Turner, the head of the Financial Services Authority (FSA), wrote to Barclays chairman Marcus Agius on 10 April this year to spell [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 9, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES Morgan Stanley sheds staff as transactions fall Morgan Stanley will this week complete a round of job cuts that will ultimately see the company shed 100 sales and trading staff, underscoring what is expected to prove a dismal second quarter for Wall Street banks. The cuts are across Europe, the Middle East and [...]
Hollande is at risk of slaying France’s golden tax geese July 8, 2012 PRESIDENT François Hollande is only just settling into the Elysée, but ripples of unrest towards his tax policies are already being felt, both in France and further afield. The headline figure is the proposed 75 per cent rate of income tax, which will apply to income of over €1m (£793,000) a year. This will be [...]
France unveils tax raid on home owners, energy firms and banks July 4, 2012 FRANCE’S new socialist government announced tax rises worth €7.2bn yesterday, including heavy one-off levies on wealthy households and big corporations. In the first major raft of economic measures since Francois Hollande was elected president in May, the government singled out large companies and the rich. British owners of second homes in France are set to [...]