Merlin plumps for 315p price for new shares November 7, 2013 SHARES in the Madame Tussauds owner Merlin Entertainments will start trading today following a sales process that had to be brought forward because it was going so well. Advisers to the float, which include Goldman Sachs, Barclays, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley and Lazard, yesterday agreed a price for the new shares of 315p, valuing the firm [...]
Sharps Pixley sold to Germany’s Degussa November 7, 2013 GERMAN bullion retailer Degussa Goldhandel yesterday bought London-based broker Sharps Pixley, saying it expects the retail market for gold bars and coins to keep growing. Sharps Pixley sells precious metal bars to British retail clients. The company, dating back to 1778, was one of the original members of London’s twice-daily gold price fixing. Degussa started [...]
City Moves for 08 November 2013 | Who’s switching jobs November 7, 2013 Institute of Directors The Institute of Directors has announced the appointment of James Sproule as chief economist and head of policy. Sproule was most recently at Accenture, where for the past seven years he led the firm’s UK and global capital markets research, and its thought leadership programme. Prior to that, Sproule was director of research [...]
How ending the letting free-for-all could save our failing high streets November 7, 2013 THE RECENT purchase of much of the retail property along London’s Queensway by Meyer Bergman and a Brunei family was a keynote deal. As all successful retail property investors know: control the mix of shops, and you control the fortunes of the area. Control the Queensway mix and you can restore a down-at-heel shopping offer [...]
M&S’s new ad campaign will struggle to reverse slumping fashion sales November 5, 2013 YOU CAN visualise the meeting at Marks & Spencer’s headquarters when its new campaign, advertising its make-or-break Autumn collection, was finalised. An ad agency suggests the idea of female empowerment and the boardroom battleground. Any actual brand idea is forgotten, as the rolodex spins and agents are called. Actress Helen Mirren, artist Tracey Emin, author [...]
Beware the unintended consequences of making a Living Wage mandatory November 4, 2013 IT’S LIVING Wage week, and many are endorsing the principle of raising low pay, whether by boosting the minimum wage, or by forcing local authorities and pressuring other private employers to pay the Living Wage. It’s an attractive proposition, advocated by politicians as varied as Ed Miliband and Boris Johnson. But it is worth pausing [...]
Merlin set to close books early after strong demand November 4, 2013 MERLIN Entertainment is planning to close the books on its £3bn stock market flotation ahead of schedule thanks to the strength of demand from institutional investors. The operator of Legoland, Alton Towers and Madame Tussauds is now expected to close the book on its initial public offering (IPO) later this week, instead of 11 November [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 04 November 2013 November 4, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Aircraft carrier cost to rise to £6.2bn Britain will this week reveal another substantial increase in the cost of building its two new aircraft carriers, declaring that total funding for the programme will rise by another £800m to £6.2bn.Philip Hammond, defence secretary, is expected to say that a new set of demands – [...]
Rothschild to advise on Poundland’s flotation November 4, 2013 BUDGET retailer Poundland has lined up Rothschild to advise on its upcoming public offering, which is expected to value the firm at more than £700m. The investment bank, which declined to comment on the issue, is expected to bring in other advisers to work on the flotation in the next few weeks. Poundland – which [...]
London Report: Recovery looks on track in busy reporting week November 3, 2013 SERVICES figures due out this week, plus the latest updates on industrial and manufacturing production, look set to show continued recovery for the British economy. “September’s industrial production figures are likely to show that overall output partially recovered from its surprise 1.1 per cent monthly fall in August,” said Martin Beck, of Capital Economics. “Manufacturing [...]