FTSE falls again as fears over economy continue June 2, 2011 BRITAIN’S top shares slid for a second day as worries over weak economic data drove investors from risky assets ahead of Friday’s US non-farm payroll numbers. The FTSE 100 closed down 80.69 points, or 1.4 per cent, at 5,847.92, with volume 93 per cent of its 90-day average. The index fell one per cent in [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS June 1, 2011 FRANCE TELECOM Nomura rates the company a “buy” and has a target price of €19.20 (£16.84). The broker has raised its earnings forecasts ahead of consensus following an investor day. The broker also thinks that the company is well placed to step up its investment phase in the near term, and sees an opportunity for [...]
Serco jumps on Indian buy May 31, 2011 SERCO shares were among the top risers in the FTSE 100 yesterday after the outsourcing giant bought Indian back-office company Intelenet for £385m. Serco, which has been gunning for more work overseas, said it expects the business process outsourcing (BPO) marketplace to grow up to 15 per cent a year to reach $291bn (£177bn) globally [...]
SERCO’S ADVISERS ON THE INTELENET DEAL May 31, 2011 THOUGH most of the work on Serco’s deal to buy Intelenet was done in India, magic circle law firm Linklaters advised the outsourcer on the UK aspects of the purchase. Leading the team was William Buckley (pictured above), who joined Linklaters as a trainee solicitor in 1990 before working his way up to partner in [...]
Banks help FTSE to end May on a high but fear still reigns May 31, 2011 BANKS and energy stocks, buoyed by hopes of a second bailout for Greece, helped Britain’s FTSE 100 higher yesterday, but traders remained concerned about buying momentum in the short-term. “Uncertainty for the near term outlook still remains bearish until the markets can pick up positive momentum and clear hurdles to give the bulls a chance [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS May 24, 2011 May Gurney Margaret Ford, Baroness Ford of Cunninghame, will become non-executive chairman at the company’s AGM on 7 July 2011. In the interim she will be appointed to the board as a non-executive director, with immediate effect. Gurney, 53, recently retired from Serco as senior independent director and has extensive public company experience, including Grainger [...]
Energy expertise key for growth, says chief exec May 23, 2011 RUBY McGregor-Smith yesterday unveiled a strong set of results at her FTSE-250 listed outsourcing company Mitie while predicting that energy advice would help to fuel future revenue growth. The trained accountant, with a reputation as a personable, effective operator, told City A.M. that government cuts had not dented its order book. On the contrary, she [...]
Euro woes and commodity falls leave FTSE low May 23, 2011 Fears of debt default in Greece, election upset in Spain and weakness in Italy’s economy caused the FTSE to tank to a two-month low today. Commodity stocks led the fallers as the FTSE 100 index plunged more than 100 points to close down 1.9 per cent at 5,835.89. Investors abandoned risky assets after rating agency [...]
FTSE buoyed by commodity price rebound May 18, 2011 The FTSE came within a nudge of 6,000 today as strong gains by commodity prices strengthened mining stocks, while property companies topped the gainers. The FTSE 100 closed at 5,923.49, above the 5,860 support level, as risk appetite returned to the market, helped by positive economic data showing UK unemployment fell for a second consecutive [...]
Serco bullish on the public sector May 9, 2011 OUTSOURCING giant Serco has said it is on track with its 2011 expectations after contract wins and is well-placed to achieve future revenue targets. Serco, which among other things runs London’s bicycle-hire scheme and Yarl’s Wood immigration removal centre, said yesterday it had won £1.6bn worth of work since the start of the year. The [...]