Mark Carney’s policy has amplified political opportunity for the Tories August 11, 2013 NO REAL rock star has ever received such rave reviews for promising to do nothing for three years. But Mark Carney breaks the mould. The new Bank of England governor has pledged to keep interest rates at 0.5 per cent until 2016, unless the economy is threatened by “knockout” conditions. Keeping the taps of cheap [...]
All hail the boffin burger: The next step in human nutrition August 5, 2013 IT WOULD be easy to dismiss the serving of the first lab-grown burger as classic silly season fodder. Yet this is one photo opportunity that really may mark a historic moment, even if most seem to be missing its exact importance. In vitro meat is significant not because it increases menu options for a few [...]
Best of the Brokers for 6 August 2013 August 5, 2013 LADBROKES Ahead of the bookmaker’s first-half results on Thursday, Peel Hunt has a “hold” rating and a price target of 201p. The broker thinks Ladbrokes is odds-on for a poor set of numbers, with earnings of around £90m and rising costs. Peel Hunt sees Playtech as a better play in the gambling sector. OPHIR ENERGY [...]
Shale oil and gas are vital for a recovery in British manufacturing July 31, 2013 ONCE again emotion is threatening to overcome reason in the shale debate. Whether they realise it or not, the professional protestors in Balcombe, who are disrupting exploratory drilling in West Sussex, threaten to destroy jobs and livelihoods across the country. Last year, Britain got over a third of its overall energy from natural gas, another [...]
Cold winter fires up Centrica earnings July 31, 2013 BRITISH Gas owner Centrica today unveiled a two per cent rise in adjusted earnings for the first half of the year, after an unusually cold winter boosted gas consumption. Overall revenue rose 14 per cent to £13.7bn over the period. “With our customers using more gas to stay warm during the unusually cold winter, we’re [...]
Prolonged cold weather and price hike boost British Gas owner’s half year profits July 31, 2013 Centrica, owner of British Gas, has reported a rise in half-year profits after an unusually cold Winter increased gas demand (release). The group’s adjusted operating profit rose by nine per cent to £1.58bn for the period ended 30 June 2013. Adjusted earnings were up two per cent to £767m or 14.8p adjusted earnings per share [...]
Banks take a bashing July 30, 2013 ■ Barclays forced to fix £12.8bn gap ■ JP Morgan pays $410m settlement ■ Billions more set aside for PPI ■ Deutsche Bank cuts balance sheet ■ RBS investors file £4bn claims BILLIONS of pounds were wiped off banks’ stock market values yesterday as a barrage of regulatory and legal action shocked markets. Barclays [...]
Ruinous green policies mean rising profits for UK energy companies July 29, 2013 YESTERDAY the Energy and Climate Change Select Committee released a report arguing that energy regulator Ofgem should force energy companies to produce more detailed financial information. One of the members of the committee – John Robertson MP – told the BBC that he needed to be able to assess whether the profits of the energy [...]
MPs call for full breakdown of all energy bills July 28, 2013 ENERGY suppliers should be forced to tell customers exactly how much climate change policies are adding to their fuel bill, according to a report released today by MPs. The energy and climate change select committee says industry regulator Ofgem should restore consumer confidence in the market by requiring suppliers to state how various components have [...]
ScottishPower warns government efficiency schemes could push energy prices up further July 25, 2013 ScottishPower has warned that the rising burden of taxes and levies on energy companies means that further price rises for customers could not be ruled out despite stable energy costs in the market. The company said yesterday that a 137.7 per cent rise in the cost of implementing government efficiency schemes (to €155.8m/£134m) in the [...]