ONLINE SME MARKETING SEMINAR February 17, 2011 British Library Business & IP Centre is holding a seminar on online selling and marketing to help small businesses communicate clearly online. Cate Trotter, the founder of Insider Trends, whose marketing and consultancy work has included brands such as Marks and Spencer, Clarks and Nokia. She will pinpoint key trends in online businesses and outline [...]
QE is back on Bank’s agenda September 4, 2011 LOW confidence, high inflation and continuing fears for the Eurozone are giving the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) a headache for Thursday’s interest rate decision. Last month the MPC’s two most hawkish members, Spencer Dale and Martin Weale, voted to keep rates on hold at 0.5 per cent. That marked a change from [...]
No QE just yet as Bank holds rates at 0.5pc September 8, 2011 THE BANK of England kept interest rates on hold at 0.5 per cent yesterday, for the 30th straight month — with analysts not predicting an increase any time soon. Not since 1950 have interest rates remained at the same level for so long. And despite rumours that the Bank is moving in a dovish direction, it [...]
Greek progress lends a hand to FTSE despite retail worries October 5, 2011 RALLIES by hard-pressed banks, insurers and commodity stocks led a bounce back by Britain’s top shares yesterday as support for debt-laden Greece revived investor appetite for riskier assets. Financial issues were boosted after the International Monetary Fund said it “definitely participate” in a second bailout package for Greece if the Washington-based lender was happy about [...]
PUBS WAR CAN WAIT AS JOE LEWIS EXPECTS NEW GREAT-GRANDCHILD September 14, 2011 ALL EYES remain on financier Joe Lewis, whose surprise appearance in London on his superyacht Aviva ten days ago has been satisfactorily explained by this week’s hostile move to take control of pub chain Mitchells & Butlers. Case closed. Or is it? As ever with the enigmatic Bahamas-based billionaire, the truth is rather more surprising [...]
FTSE sees modest rise on solid company news September 6, 2011 Stocks have moved higher this morning following heavy selling in the US and Asia overnight, but markets remain under pressure over fears of a global recession. Positive trading updates from a number of companies have given UK shares a modest lift this morning after yesterday’s 189-point slump. But in a warning sign that investor sentiment [...]
Spencer sells Origin stake to US group July 7, 2011 ORIGIN Asset Management, a boutique fund manager backed by Icap’s Michael Spencer (pictured), was snapped up by US asset manager Principal Financial Group for $66m (£41m) yesterday. Iowa-based Principal has agreed to buy a 74 per cent stake in Origin, which manages £2bn of equity portfolios out of London for institutional clients, while Origin’s partners [...]
Spencer sells Origin stake to US group July 7, 2011 ORIGIN Asset Management, a boutique fund manager backed by Icap’s Michael Spencer (pictured), was snapped up by US asset manager Principal Financial Group for $66m (£41m) yesterday. Iowa-based Principal has agreed to buy a 74 per cent stake in Origin, which manages £2bn of equity portfolios out of London for institutional clients, while Origin’s partners [...]
Why filling in the census improves your life March 9, 2011 SO, how old are you? Have you ever been married? Who do you live with? Do you have a mortgage? How many bedrooms do you have? What religion are you? Yes, it might feel like Big Brother plopped on our doormats this week. The 2011 census asks questions that probably many of us would find [...]
Marks and Spencer May 23, 2010 SHAREHOLDERS were understandably miffed when Sir Stuart Rose announced his intention to stay on as executive chairman of Marks & Spencer. They were told that the power grab would ensure an smooth transition when Rose stood down; the succession at Britain’s favourite retailer has been anything but. New chief executive Marc Bolland has arrived, but [...]