‘No talks’ at Whitbread October 26, 2005 The wind was knocked out of Whitbread’s sails yesterday after chief executive Alan Parker moved to quieten the takeover talk that has buoyed its shares. The leisure group was one of the biggest fallers of the day after Parker said there had been “no talks” with private or trade buyers about selling off any of [...]
BP weathers storm havoc October 26, 2005 Oil giant BP’s third-quarter rise in underlying profit was largely unaffected by summer hurricane damage in America, leaping 27.5 per cent, the company revealed yesterday. The company’s underlying profit, driven by high barrel prices and strong refining margins, rose to $5.33bn (£2.98bn). The company said it owed its strong underlying performance to “high but volatile” [...]
Marconi boss in £9m windfall October 26, 2005 Marconi CEO Mike Parton is £8.8m richer after Ericsson bought his company for £1.2bn. Ericsson is buying the bulk of Marconi, the former GEC, once the country’s biggest private employer. The remainder of the business — the British services operation — will be spun off into a new company, telent, which will be listed on [...]
Grapes of wealth October 26, 2005 Wine investment requires patience and special knowledge and is not a way to make a quick profit — you need to be in it for the long run, says Toby Walne Wine lovers can savour a fine vintage not just in a glass but also as a tasty investment. Despite the wine market being notoriously [...]
GM moves to sell off lorries October 25, 2005 General Motors is in talks to sell its lorry businesses in Australia and South Africa to Japanese manufacturer Isuzu, as it attempts to raise cash and focus on car production. GM is struggling to cut costs and boost sales as it loses ground to leaner rivals such as Toyota and Nissan. Isuzu will reportedly buy [...]
No end to Wolseley’s buying spree October 25, 2005 Building materials wholesaler Wolseley has continued its buying spree and added insulation distributor Encon and North American plumbing company Camellia Valley Supply to its global portfolio. Wolseley, the world’s biggest plumbing and heating distributor, raised $1.2bn (£677m) last week through a private placement to more than 30 institutional investors, which was marketed by the Royal [...]
Thames Water plans £15bn float October 25, 2005 RWE, the German utility, is considering spinning off the Thames Water business. A float on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) is expected to a capitalisation of up to £15bn. Thames Water left the LSE following the RWE acquisition in 2000. According to German press reports yesterday RWE is now weighing up a partial flotation, possibly [...]
Dubai puts in bold £469m bid for Refco October 25, 2005 The fortunes of stricken American hedge fund Refco took a fresh twist yesterday after a bid led by the Dubai government and billionaire Ronald Burkle trumped offers for its future trading units. The Dubai group’s $828m (£468.8m) offer exceeds a $768m bid by private equity fund JC Flowers and $790m from Interactive Brokers Group LLC. [...]
How the Queen’s Dressmaker got its cutting edge back October 25, 2005 When Timothy Maltin was just 27 he became the managing director of a national institution. Five years ago, Timothy Maltin went to work in tracksuit bottoms and a green Pilgrim Services sweatshirt top. Just the job when you’re running a grave tending business. But these days Maltin is chairman and chief executive of Hardy Amies, [...]
Beauty fixes to turn back the clock October 25, 2005 Horrific tales of botched cosmetic surgery might put some people off going under the knife. But there are now procedures available which claim to offer similar youthful benefits without resorting to such extreme measures. In Britain the popularity of cosmetic surgery continues to grow. Aside from the medical risk that these invasive procedures pose — [...]