J Sainsbury names Tyler September 13, 2009 SUPERMARKET chain J Sainsbury has appointed former GUS finance director David Tyler to become its next chairman. Tyler will be taking over the role of Sir Philip Hampton as head of Britain’s third largest supermarket group. Hampton earlier this year said he would relinquish the position to allow him to concentrate on his chairmanship of [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING September 8, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES SCRUTINY THREATENS SUCCESS OF BAIKAL, SAYS LSERegulatory scrutiny over “dark pools” and the failure of most such platforms in Europe to make money mean that Baikal, the London Stock Exchange’s planned platform, “might not work”, says Xavier Rolet, LSE chief executive. “It’s not impossible that it might not work,” Rolet said. He said [...]
Kraft’s Cadbury bid sparks a flurry of FTSEmerger hopes September 7, 2009 THE leading share index notched back up towards the 5,000-points mark yesterday, after a proposed bid for Cadbury by Kraft raised hopes of a more general pick-up in merger activity and lifted banks and commodity shares. The FTSE 100 rose 1.7 per cent to a close of 4,933.18, up 81.48 points, as it came close [...]
CITY MOVES Who’s switching jobs August 18, 2009 RBC Capital MarketsThe corporate and investment banking arm of the Royal Bank of Canada has hired Phil Halper as a director in its Scandinavian rates trading team, based in London. Halper joins the firm with 15 years of market experience, having most recently worked at the Royal Bank of Scotland, where he was a senior [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS August 17, 2009 Cheyne Capital ManagementThe alternative asset manager has appointed Paul Ruddleston and Paul Keohane, pictured, as partners. The pair joins from Morgan Stanley, where they were managing directors and spent a combined 26 years. They will be responsible for managing the Cheyne Equity Macro Fund, along with former colleague and head portfolio manager Jorge Giampaoli, who [...]
Ray of hope for Unilever as profits hit August 6, 2009 CONSUMER goods giant Unilever yesterday provided a ray of hope that consumer confidence may be creeping back as it returned to growth in the second quarter of this year. The group behind brands ranging from Ben & Jerry’s ice cream to Hellman’s Mayonnaise and Dove soap said sales volumes fell in most regions around the [...]
ARE YOU CHEERED BY UNILEVER’S RETURN TO GROWTH? August 6, 2009 GRAHAM JONES PANMURE GORDON“Unilever certainly deserves credit for restor-ing volume growth more strongly than we had expected, with two per cent growth in the second quarter after a fall. While we are trimming our sterling profit forecasts by four to five per cent to reflect recent sterling strength, we are raising our price target to [...]
Bank decision boosts market as the bankwagon rolls on August 6, 2009 THE LARGE-CAP index closed higher yesterday, driven by strength from banks after the Bank of England (BoE) surprised markets by expanding its quantitive easing plan to £175bn. The FTSE 100 closed 43.40 points higher, or 0.9 per cent, at 4,690.53, after hitting a fresh 2009 intraday high of 4,729.58 following the BoE announcement. The BoE [...]
Banks gear up to report on the first half of a tough year August 2, 2009 The market’s attention is likely to be dominated this week by the banks, which will be reporting their first-half results during the five days. But there will be plenty more for investors to sink their teeth into, with insurers, bookmakers and industrials all on the radar too. Barclays and HSBC kick the week off this [...]
Reckitt beats forecasts due to new lines July 29, 2009 CLEANING products group Reckitt Benckiser yesterday raised its full-year targets after beating forecasts with a 29 per cent jump in second-quarter profit but investors were focused on the loss of its US licence for Suboxone, a drug used to treat opiate addiction. Reckitt shares had dipped on investor concerns that the British company will lose [...]