Xstrata exodus continues with Reid departure December 4, 2012 XSTRATA’S long-serving chief financial officer Trevor Reid is to follow departing chief executive Mick Davis out the door of the mining giant when the firm completes its merger with commodities business Glencore next year, it was announced yesterday. Reid, who was poached by Davis in 2001 to help turn the flailing business around, has decided [...]
Moonpig signs off year with jump in profits November 25, 2012 MOONPIG.COM, the online greetings card company, reported a 20 per cent rise in sales last year driven by growth at both its core and personalised card divisions. The internet retailer, founded 12 years ago by ex-commodities trader Nick Jenkins, said sales rose £7m to £45.8m in the year to 30 April. Profits jumped 10 per [...]
Glencore gets EU nod as it ends zinc deal November 22, 2012 GLENCORE won approval from EU antitrust regulators yesterday, as expected, marking another hurdle jumped for its £56bn mega-merger with miner Xstrata. The European Commission cleared the deal – which has taken a tense 10 months of negotiations since Glencore first approached Xstrata in February – but said that the commodity trader must scrap its exclusive [...]
Strong commodities and SAB Miller drive FTSE to a three-week high November 22, 2012 BRITAIN’S top share index reached a three-week high yesterday after gaining for a fourth straight session, driven by strength in commodity stocks after a return to growth in China’s manufacturing sector. The FTSE 100 index closed up 39 points, or 0.6 per cent, at 5,791.03, extending its gains for the week so far to almost [...]
Glencore set to win EU approval on Xstrata deal November 21, 2012 THE £56bn mega-merger between commodity giants Glencore and Xstrata looks set to clear another hurdle today, as EU antitrust regulators are expected to approve the deal. Glencore is understood to have improved its offer to secure an approval from European Commission antitrust regulators, which is set to be officially announced today. The commodity trading powerhouse [...]
Miner Gemfields snaps up luxury jeweller Faberge November 21, 2012 EMERALD miner Gemfields is to buy luxury jeweller Fabergé in a deal that values the iconic egg maker at $142m (£89m), it said yesterday. Fabergé, famous for its jewelled eggs, is being sold by Pallinghurst, which is headed by former BHP Billiton executive Brian Gilbertson, who will retain a 49.3 per cent stake in the [...]
Sir John Bond steps down as Glenstrata giant is born November 20, 2012 CITY grandee Sir John Bond stepped down yesterday as chairman of Xstrata, as shareholders backed the £56bn mega-merger with Glencore but snubbed controversial remuneration plans for senior executives. The retention bonus snub prompted Bond – who was set to become chairman of the enlarged group and backed the pay proposals as “fundamental” to its future [...]
Xstrata investors back Glencore megamerger November 20, 2012 THE £56bn soap opera between commodity giants Xstrata and Glencore finally came to a head yesterday as Xstrata investors approved the mining mega-merger. In a meeting lasting just over two hours, investors green-lit the merger – whose twists and turns have entertained the market since Glencore first approached Xstrata in February – and paved the [...]
Fresh allegations overshadow welcome cultural shift in City November 20, 2012 LET us hope yesterday won’t eventually be remembered as another disastrous day for the City of London. Hewlett Packard’s inflammatory attack on the accounts of Autonomy, the UK tech giant it now owns, is either a wrong-headed attempt by a struggling US firm to try and justify why it failed to do its due diligence [...]
Calling all Mo Bros – one week left to send your best specimen November 20, 2012 BARELY more than a week left in The Capitalist’s hunt to source the fairest and furriest moustache in all the City land. As we are now past the halfway point in our hairy little challenge, it is time for an update. The Bank of America Merrill Lynch boys, who have banded together on the fundraiser’s [...]