Bottom Line: Pressure on dividend as investors hope bad news comes in twos November 12, 2013 INVESTORS are clearly concerned. Despite reassurances from RSA’s under-pressure management that the Irish investigation will not hit the group’s long term outlook or dividend policy, shareholders scarpered, wiping almost £500m off the insurer’s market cap yesterday. It’s no wonder they’re worried – the group has already altered its dividend twice this year – cutting both the rate [...]
Retailers predict Mega Monday rush November 12, 2013 UK retailers are bracing themselves for a leap in online traffic this Christmas, with 2 December predicted to be the busiest internet shopping day of the year. According to research by Barclays bank nearly two thirds of high street retailers (63 per cent) surveyed expect website traffic to increase by 11 per cent on 2 [...]
Monte dei Paschi sends bailout plan to European Commission November 11, 2013 THE EUROPEAN Commission yesterday received a restructuring plan from troubled Italian bank Monte dei Paschi di Siena, which needs the EU’s green light for a €4.1bn bailout, a press officer for EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said. It was not immediately clear how long it would take for the EU Commission to approve the plan, [...]
London Report: BT and Shire lift FTSE as markets remain bullish November 11, 2013 BRITAIN’S FTSE 100 rose yesterday, boosted by signs of a strengthening global economy and major deals for pharma group Shire and telecoms group BT. Shire rose to an all-time high after beating competitors to buy ViroPharma, in a $4.2bn deal implying a 64 per cent premium to the stock price of the US rare diseases [...]
Co-op slashes Labour donation and dividend November 11, 2013 THE TROUBLED Co-operative Group has cuts its donations to the Labour Party as part of wider plans to cut costs in the wake of its banking arm’s capital problems. Its members voted for a cap of £1m on donations this year, down from £1.2m previously. And bosses could choose not to give anything to the [...]
Cold snap helps sales warm up at John Lewis November 11, 2013 JOHN LEWIS’ sales jumped seven per cent last week, boosted by the colder weather, which prompted consumers to stock up on warm clothing. The retailer yesterday posted sales of £91m in the week to 9 November, with online sales up by almost a quarter (23.1 per cent), compared with the same time last year. However [...]
Experian boss defends his drive for expansion November 10, 2013 Don Robert has steered the credit checking firm into fast-growing new businesses AS THE boss of a company best known for its credit checks, Don Robert is at home talking about hazardous spending decisions. “Arguably if every investment we made was brilliant we’d have to ask ourselves the question: are we taking the right amount [...]
House of Fraser weighs first quarter float amid rising markets November 10, 2013 DEPARTMENT store House of Fraser has accelerated plans for a listing on London’s stock market in the first quarter of 2014 after appointing Rothschild as advisers. The store, which posted record sales last year, is expected to hold a beauty parade of banks before Christmas to co-ordinate and run a share offering, with plans to [...]
Walking home for Christmas November 10, 2013 Help the thousands of ex-military personnel who struggle to get back into work by ditching London’s public transport, and making the final journey home before Christmas on foot TODAY, on Remembrance Day, we commemorate the servicemen and women who have given their lives in the line of duty. It’s also a time to remember those [...]
Tired of the rain? Try these winter getaways November 10, 2013 NOW THE embers of Bonfire Night have fizzled out, the nation can get on with the serious business of preparing for Christmas. But what about afterwards? Once the pudding has been gobbled up and the fairy lights have been put away, all that remains is frost, a terrifying credit card bill, and indigestion. Our winter [...]