Don’t let City living dull your good looks June 7, 2010 A FRIEND visited from the country this weekend and claimed to have blown dirty snot into a tissue after spending just two days in London. Like most long-term Londoners, I’m in denial about black phlegm, but she had a point. Living between the office, the Tube, the fumes of the street and the boozy, salt-and-sugar [...]
Denton Wilde Sapte joins the rush for transatlantic law firm mergers June 6, 2010 MERGERS and acquisitions are rattling along at quite a pace among transatlantic law firms – unlike at the corporate clients they service, many of which are still finding the M&A game a little hard going at the moment, not least of course Prudential. The latest legal mega-deal repays a closer look. The City’s Denton Wilde [...]
Baker & McKenzie elects Brazilian as its chairman June 3, 2010 US LAW firm Baker & McKenzie has appointed Brazilian Eduardo Leite as chairman, marking the first time a large legal practice has turned to the emerging markets for a leader. Leite, who currently practises in the firm’s Sao Paolo office and serves as executive vice president of the China-Brazil Business Council, will replace outgoing chairman [...]
Network Rail profit slides as debt rises June 3, 2010 NETWORK Rail’s pre-tax profits dropped by more than 75 per cent last year, amid a reduced budget and rising debt pile. The owner of the British rail system lost eight per cent of revenue, down to £5.67bn, in the last financial year due to a reduced government grant and a fall in track charges paid [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING June 2, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES ROLLS-ROYCE SPIRITS BUOYED BY GHOST Rolls-Royce says it will at least double its sales this year, thanks to the launch of its new Ghost model and a resurgance in demand for its high-priced cars around the world. Sales of the BMW-owned brand’s cars in China, where Rolls-Royce has seven dealerships, will for the [...]
Record period tops forecast for VTB bank June 2, 2010 VTB, Russia’s second biggest lender, returned to the black with a record 15.3bn rouble (£335m) profit for the first three months of 2010 after six quarters of losses. The company beat analysts’ estimate of 10.2bn roubles, but decided not to raise its full-year forecast. Chief financial officer Herbert Moos said: “We do not expect that [...]
ISPs slam Ofcom’s piracy rules June 1, 2010 OFCOM yesterday confirmed it will apply tough new anti-piracy laws only to internet service providers (ISP) with over 400,000 subscribers. The controversial Digital Economy Bill (DEB), passed after Gordon Brown had dissolved his government, will force ISPs to write to users suspected of piracy and could eventually force them to cut the users off. The [...]
The grocer who says this year will test retailers as well as shoppers May 31, 2010 Much like the rest of the country, the chief executive of the country’s third largest supermarket group is trying to make up his mind about the coalition government. At the start of the election campaign Sainsbury’s boss Justin King was one of many who backed Tory plans to scrap national insurance hikes for employers, a [...]
Sort out all your currency needs before you jet off May 27, 2010 EXCITEMENT about the World Cup is starting to reach fever pitch and many football fans are heading to South Africa either with tickets in hand or simply to soak up the atmosphere. England fans are expected to spend around £135m during the World Cup, according to a recent study by accountants Grant Thornton. However, restrictions [...]
WORLD CUP STOCK PICKS ARE FAR FROM A SAFE INVESTMENT PLAY May 26, 2010 YET more World Cup fun and games from the financial sector, as Halifax Share Dealing yesterday launched a “Sports Stocks Index” based on the upcoming tournament. The broker’s method was to match shares to each of the competing World Cup nations by matching their Fifa country abbreviations to a ticker symbol on an international exchange. [...]