Latin Americans book spots in Brazil as line-up takes shape October 16, 2013 CHILE, Ecuador and Honduras have taken the number of teams qualified for the World Cup to 21 after they sealed their places in Brazil early yesterday morning. Barcelona’s Alexis Sanchez scored as Chile narrowly beat Ecuador 2-1, ensuring they took third and fourth spots in the South American qualifying group. Victory over Argentina was not [...]
Diageo aims to speed up sales growth in Africa October 15, 2013 DRINKS giant Diageo wants to further speed up its sales in Africa by expanding into new countries, rebranding its Guinness brand and tapping into the growing spirits market. The FTSE 100 company currently makes £1.4bn in annual sales from its Africa division, accounting for 12 per cent of the group total. Over the past decade, [...]
Hodgson’s pride in Lions October 15, 2013 Rooney and Gerrard sink Poles and send England into World Cup finals in Brazil ENGLAND manager Roy Hodgson toasted the proudest moment of his career last night after a nervy but exhilarating 2-0 home victory over Poland cemented his team’s qualification for next year’s World Cup in Brazil. Striker Wayne Rooney’s 41st-minute header eased jitters [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 15 October 2013 October 14, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Twitter aims to sell ads on other sites Twitter is planning to mine data about its users to help sell advertising on other mobile apps or websites, as it tries to find new sources of revenue in the run up to a stock market listing that could value the company at $15bn. Moscow [...]
Russian credit card float to aid Goldman coffers October 14, 2013 GOLDMAN Sachs is set to net a multi-million dollar windfall after its stake in Russian credit card firm TCS Group was priced at the upper end of the range for a forthcoming float in London. TCS, which offers credit cards to people living in rural Russia, is offering global depository receipts (GDRs) at $14 to [...]
Ikea sales lifted by Russia and China demand October 14, 2013 IKEA, the world’s largest furniture retailer, said yesterday it had gained market share in nearly all markets last year as it posted a 3.1 per cent rise in full-year sales. The Swedish chain, which is viewed as a bellwether for global consumer demand because of its size, posted sales of €27.9bn (£23.7bn) in the 12 [...]
New WH Smith boss pledges to keep lid on costs October 10, 2013 WH SMITH’s new boss Stephen Clarke said yesterday he would continue the cost-cutting strategy laid out by his predecessor Kate Swann and step up growth overseas, as the group posted a rise in profits despite a decline in full-year sales. The news and stationary retailer, which also announced a further £50m share buyback, said total [...]
Foreign buyers take half of £1m London homes October 8, 2013 NEARLY half of prime central London homes sold for more than £1m in the year to June went to foreign buyers, according to research published by Knight Frank. However only 28 per cent of the buyers lived outside the UK, as opposed to foreign residents in the country. These buyers were mainly investors, looking to [...]
Low growth in emerging world as India hit hard in September October 8, 2013 INDIA recorded the sharpest contraction in activity for over four years this September, according to HSBC’s emerging markets index, released this morning. The index suggests that Indian activity declined in every month of the third quarter, seeing the worst period since the middle of 2009. Emerging markets pointed to another month of meagre expansion. The [...]
Grounding planes means grounding growth: We must act on airports now October 8, 2013 A SOLUTION to London’s airport capacity crisis is a national imperative. After years of indecision and inertia, we have got to act to support growth. Heathrow opened in March 1946, less than a year after the war, and has since grown to become the world’s third busiest airport. Yet in the time it took to [...]