£97,000 worth of fun July 13, 2010 THE reason that Aston Martin’s V8 Vantage is so well-loved is all to do with a little valve in the exhaust system. Around town and driving normally, the V8 Vantage delivers the usual Aston Martin contemplative serenity, but under full acceleration the V8 Vantage makes the most fantastically hellish noise as the valve opens up. [...]
PERSONAL FINANCE NEWS June 24, 2010 PAY BY CARD TO GAIN REWARDS Savvy shoppers could earn substantial rewards by whacking all their day-to-day spending on the plastic. Based on an average household spend of £386.30 per week on a reward credit card, and by paying off the balance in full each month, Confused.com research shows after just one year, some of [...]
Apollo weighs higher Brit bid June 13, 2010 BRIT INSURANCE, the Lloyd’s of London outfit, has its largest investors’ backing to demand an improved takeover offer from US private equity giant Apollo, City A.M. understands. The FTSE 250-listed insurer on Friday knocked back a cash approach from Apollo worth £785m, or 1,000p per share, arguing it “significantly undervalues” the company. Apollo was last [...]
THE TIPSTER June 13, 2010 FOOTBALL results might be capturing everybody’s attention at the moment but there are some key financial scores out this week. Following positive full-year results in March, grocer J Sainsbury is expected to announce first quarter profits this week. Will its management confirm Morrisons’ news that a slowdown in the market has begun? With the firm’s [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING May 23, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES PRINCE ANDREW’S TRADE ROLE DEFENDED Buckingham Palace defended Prince Andrew’s globetrotting role promoting British business on Sunday after a newspaper sting appeared to show his former wife selling access to him for £500,000, offered by a reporter posing as a tycoon. Both the royal household and the government said the Duke of York’s [...]
Stylish, affordable new homes for a brave green world May 20, 2010 THE UK is committed to ensuring that all new homes meet an ambitious zero-carbon standard by 2016. And with only a smattering of them in the country to date, there’s a long way to go. Indeed, Barry Morgan, of Morgan Restoration, an ardent eco-developer who has just installed solar panels on The Boatyard development overlooking [...]
SuperGroup sales surge as youth spending stays strong May 11, 2010 YOUTH fashion retailer SuperGroup, which floated on the London Stock Exchange in March, saw sales soar by 83 per cent to £139m in the year to 2 May. The company, whose Superdry brand is sported by celebrities including David Beckham, said it expected to make a pre-tax profit of at least £25.7m. SuperGroup has 43 [...]
LONDON TURNS OUT IN FORCE TO WATCH FINAL ELECTION SHOWDOWN May 6, 2010 FITTINGLY for one of the most important elections in this country’s history, turnout smashed expectations yesterday – and we’re talking of the bars, pubs and restaurants of London, rather than of the polling stations. The City, eager to know what the next government will have in store for them, flocked to parties as the results [...]
Sports Direct keeps its eye on the ball with strong sales April 22, 2010 SPORTS Direct Britain’s biggest sporting goods retailer, is on track to meet its full-year earnings forecast after strong trading over the Easter holidays, it said yesterday. The group, controlled by Newcastle United soccer club boss Mike Ashley, said sales rose 2.9 per cent to £214m in the nine weeks ended 28 March, with gross profits [...]
Beauty and the Beast April 20, 2010 IN TODAY’S list of the “world’s most popular goals” by goal-setting website 43 things, 19,131 people said that their goal was to “go on a road trip with no predetermined destination”. The pure pleasure of driving minus a defined objective came in first, before losing weight, falling in love and ceasing to procrastinate. It’s imperfect [...]