Qatar makes £1.6bn bid for Canary Wharf owner Songbird November 6, 2014 Qatar wants to buy up Canary Wharf in a £1.6bn deal, showing the oil rich state’s determined interest in snapping up vast chunks of valuable and iconic London property. The deal would be one of the biggest property sales ever in the UK, and will extend Qatar’s reach over London landmarks, which already includes the [...]
Big banks hurt by competition investigation November 6, 2014 INVESTORS fled the big banks’ shares yesterday as a major new investigation threatened to break them up or impose significant new costs. But small lenders cheered the probe as a chance to end the dominance of the giant high street banks. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is investigating the personal current account and the [...]
John Lewis Christmas advert 2014: Why are John Lewis festive ads such a big thing? And can Monty the Penguin live up to expectations? November 6, 2014 It’s not Christmas without an emotional, heart-warming, sometimes tear-jerking, advert from John Lewis. The unveiling of each new ad has become the unofficial kick-off of the festive period- move over Coca-Cola Santa, this year there's Monty the Penguin. Last year’s, featuring an animated bear and a hare, was the most popular yet with more than 13m [...]
Lord Myners’ report into Royal Mail mustn’t get lost in the post November 5, 2014 It's the privatisation row that won’t go away. Royal Mail’s shares may have performed limply since their post-flotation peak earlier this year, but their initial surge makes it a safe bet that the sell-off will feature heavily during next year’s general election campaign. Two reports – from the National Audit Office and the Business [...]
Foreign exchange firm Moneycorp spurred on by 50 per cent rise in half-year profits November 4, 2014 Foreign exchange firm Moneycorp yesterday said strong growth in its retail division helped the group to a 50 per cent rise in half-year profits. The firm, which was acquired by private equity house Bridgepoint in August, added 31 new bureaux de change at airports during the six months ending 30 June, helping to boost revenue [...]
British man held in Hong Kong over murders November 1, 2014 A 29-year-old British man has been arrested in Hong Kong after the bodies of two women were found in an apartment building in the city. The bodies were found in the Wan Chai district of the city after a call from the man on Friday evening. One woman was found dead with neck injuries in [...]
US corporate results round up October 30, 2014 MASTERCARD MasterCard reported a better-than-expected 15.5 per cent jump in quarterly profit as efforts to expand its international business paid off, with more people willing to use cards instead of cash. MasterCard’s worldwide purchase volume, excluding the US, grew 12.8 per cent to $554bn (£345bn) on a local currency basis in the third quarter. The [...]
City Moves for 31 October 2014 | Who’s switching jobs October 30, 2014 Berwin Leighton Paisner The law firm has announced the appointment of Elizabeth Bradley as head of corporate tax. She trained at Berwin Leighton Paisner and was made a partner in 2008. Bradley advises on all areas of corporate taxation, with a particular specialism in real estate tax. EY The professional services firm has announced the [...]
Intertek leads the way as FTSE buoyed by data – London Report October 29, 2014 BRITAIN’S top equity index yesterday rose to its highest level in nearly three weeks on the expectation that the US Federal Reserve would signal that it was in no rush to raise interest rates. However, late last night – after the London close – investors elsewhere in the world were betting that a US rate [...]
Facebook has shown the way with its move to mobile – now everyone else must follow October 29, 2014 Facebook has made mobile pay. That much was made clear after the site revealed mobile adverts now account for 66 per cent of its advertising revenue. And when that mobile ad revenue amounts to $1.95bn, it pays to seek to understand how it got there – and quite possibly how to copy it. “Our strong [...]