Saint-Gobain sees profits rise July 29, 2010 FRANCE’S Saint-Gobain, the world’s largest building materials group, posted a rise in first-half sales and operating profit, helped by the strength of the construction sector in emerging markets, especially Asia. Operating profit rose 55.4 per cent and the group raised its 2010 cashflow target. St Gobain confirmed its target for a strong rise in operating [...]
HOW TO MAKE THE RIGHT IMPRESSION July 28, 2010 IMAGE IS EVERYTHING Look conservative with a small c – think West Wing, not Sex and the City. Make sure that you accessorise carefully and avoid any novelty fashion. If in any doubt, aim for a smarter look than you think is needed – it’s better to be safe than sorry. ACT CONFIDENT EVEN IF [...]
ARM sees 167pc profit spike after surge in demand for smartphones July 27, 2010 Rising demand for smartphones, netbooks and tablet computers saw chip designer ARM Holdings deliver a remarkable 167 per cent year-on-year spike in profit. The British company, whose designs are in more than 95 per cent of the world’s mobile phones, posted record pre-tax profit of £43.5m on revenue of £100m, both ahead of expectations. The [...]
Canon boosted as camera and printer demand rises July 27, 2010 JAPANESE camera and office equipment maker Canon yesterday posted a 153 per cent rise in quarterly profit, a bigger than expected climb on robust sales of its high-end cameras. For the year to 31 December the maker of IXY compact cameras and upmarket EOS cameras kept its operating profit outlook at 360bn yen (£2.6bn), compared [...]
The world’s centre of gravity is moving East July 25, 2010 THE Prime Minister, who leads a delegation of senior ministers including George Osborne, William Hague and Vince Cable to India this week, is right to commit his government to building a “special partnership” with Delhi. The world’s centre of gravity is moving East. Washington is shifting its attention from its post WWII Atlantic allies to [...]
Pay for IT staff in hedge funds surging because of regulations July 25, 2010 PAY for IT staff working in hedge funds and asset managers has surged 13 per cent in the last six months as businesses face extra pressure to comply with banking regulations. The figures, from a survey by ReThink Recruitment, also reveal some funds are increasing their IT staffing by more than 50 per cent. Post [...]
55 PER CENT BEER BREWER GETS HAMMERED BY ANIMAL ACTIVISTS July 22, 2010 A DOLLOP of mirth for the City yesterday as it emerged that independent brewery BrewDog is up to its record-breaking tricks again. BrewDog, which has twice before held the record for the strongest beer in the world, yesterday unveiled its latest offering, a 55 per cent proof blond ale retailing at £500 a bottle, which [...]
Wall St rallies on corporate outlook July 22, 2010 Upbeat outlooks from economic bellwethers 3M, UPS and Caterpillar catapulted US stocks yesterday as investors shed some of their fears about the strength of the recovery. The parade of prominent names reporting earnings continued after the market’s close with Microsoft, whose shares rose 2.9 per cent in regular trading. The software company reported quarterly results [...]
Morgan Stanley continues down the road to recovery July 21, 2010 WALL Street lapped up a solid set of second-quarter results from Morgan Stanley yesterday, buoying market sentiment after a disappointing performance over the same period from some of the bank’s peers, notably Goldman Sachs. Morgan Stanley beat analyst expectations with post-tax profit of $1.4bn (£921m) for the three months to June, swinging back into the [...]
Sage is poised to appoint Guy Berruyer as its chief executive July 15, 2010 UK SOFTWARE group, Sage, is on the brink of appointing Guy Berruyer as its new chief executive. Berruyer is understood to be the favourite to take over from current boss Paul Walker, who is stepping down from the post after 16 years, according to the Financial Times. Contracts are expected to be signed within days. [...]