Value lines lift Northern Food’s sales May 27, 2009 A SURGE in demand for value lines helped Northern Foods beat market expectations for full year sales yesterday. But the group’s pre-tax profit still fell 5.4 per cent to £47.5m from £50.1m the year before due to restructuring costs. And it warned on future trading due to the rising price of ingredients and pressure from [...]
Fashion turns to fury as Versace chief exec walks May 27, 2009 VERSACE chief executive Giancarlo di Risio will soon leave the Italian luxury firm after a series of boardroom clashes. Earlier this week the group denied a feud between creative director Donatella Versace and di Risio. Di Risio was hired in 2004 by Versace, which is owned by Donatella, her brother Santo and her daughter Allegra. [...]
ANZ favourite in race for RBS Asia operations May 27, 2009 AUSTRALIA and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) moved into pole position to clinch a deal for Royal Bank of Scotland’s (RBS) Asian assets after rival bidders HSBC and Standard Chartered failed to come up with firm bids. ANZ said it had submitted a non-binding bid for the assets and is raising up to A$2.85bn (£1.38bn) [...]
Old Mutual in China U-turn May 27, 2009 INSURER Old Mutual pulled out of buying a 49 per cent stake in China’s ABN Amro Teda Fund Management yesterday as part of a drive to streamline its businesses. Old Mutual, South Africa’s largest insurer, said in March it would scale back its expansion in Asia following a review of the company instigated by chief [...]
Ombudsman registers jump in insurance firm complaints May 27, 2009 COMPLAINTS about insurance companies rose by 84 per cent last year as firms tightened their belts during the economic crisis, sometimes at the expense of customer services. A Financial Ombudsman Service report, published yesterday, says it handled a record 127,471 new disputes about firms in all sectors over the last year and a staggering 789,877 [...]
NYSE Euronext gets go ahead for derivatives clearing house May 27, 2009 NYSE EURONEXT has received approval from the FSA to launch NYSE Liffe Clearing, a clearing house for its London derivatives market. NYSE Liffe Clearing is due to launch on 27 July, subject to a period of review, as a new division of NYSE Liffe. “The new clearing arrangements will enable us for the first time [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS May 27, 2009 MARSTON’SKBC Peel Hunt highlights Marston’s as the only pub company that has maintained its dividend, but also not chosen to raises new equity. The analysts argue that management has demonstrated its commitment to moving cash in the right direction, and argue the shares current level offers a buying opportunity. Ups target price to 200p. AVEVAInvestec [...]
REWARDS FOR FAILURE AT BT May 27, 2009 PRESSURE was mounting on BT yesterday, after the struggling telecoms giant revealed that the former head of its loss-making Global Services division (BTGS) received a pay packet totalling £2.85m in 2008. Ahead of the company’s annual general meeting in July, shareholders said Francois Barrault’s annual package – which included a £1.59m termination pay off – [...]
Opel talks stall as job row looms May 27, 2009 GENERAL Motors was last night locked in talks with German chancellor Angela Merkel, US government representatives and potential bidders for GM’s European Opel unit, in an effort to rescue the division, even as a row over likely job losses was brewing. The talks in Merkel’s Berlin office were focused on identifying the best bidder of [...]
Fresh row in TNK-BP saga May 27, 2009 THE acrimony between BP and its partners in the TNK-BP joint venture flared up anew yesterday as a group of Russian shareholders put up their own candidate to rival the British company’s choice of chief executive. BP unveiled Pavel Skitovich, a former head of Russian mining firm Polyus Gold, as its choice to lead the [...]