Housebuilding boss downplays Help to Buy influence August 19, 2013 Housebuilder Bovis Homes Group has announced a 19 per cent jump in first half pre-tax profits to £18.6m and that it has already sold around 90 per cent of its homes for the year. However, its chief executive denied the success was due entirely to a government-fuelled housing bubble (release). Bovis’s average house price increased [...]
Retailers set for best Xmas sales since pre-crisis October 14, 2013 BRITISH retailers are set to enjoy their best growth in Christmas sales since the financial crisis, according to a report published yesterday that forecast consumers would spend at least £2bn more than in 2012. Market research specialist Verdict predicted that spending in the fourth quarter would rise 2.2 per cent from the same period in [...]
Culture and shopping in Shanghai and Hong Kong November 10, 2013 When Michelle Filmer went to China, she split her time between its two most vibrant cities. From luxury to history, she selects the top ten highlights of her visit 1. THE BUND The waterfront area in central Shanghai that runs along the west bank of the Huangpu river is known as The Bund. The west [...]
Japanese brewer in talks to buy Glaxo’s Ribena and Lucozade September 5, 2013 JAPANESE group Suntory Beverage & Food is in advanced talks to buy Lucozade and Ribena from pharmaceuticals giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). A person close to the company told City A.M. that the two drinks brands are likely to be sold for between £1bn to £1.5bn and that a deal could be completed within days. However, the [...]
Rising fuel costs: The real trigger behind the 2008 subprime crisis October 29, 2013 FIVE years on, and academics and journalists are still attempting to explain the US subprime loan crisis that, in September 2008, caused the collapse of Lehman Brothers and apparently triggered the global economic crisis. But an important factor in understanding what happened is missing: energy prices. In November to December 1998, a barrel of oil [...]
Winton Capital suffers rare slip as fund fees fall October 3, 2013 WINTON Capital Management, one of Europe’s biggest hedge funds, saw turnover and operating profits slide last year after it fell short on some of its performance targets. The company, established by hedge fund pioneer David Harding in 1997, posted £192.9m in turnover for the year ending 2012, down from £350.6m in 2011. This led to [...]
Ignore the cranks: Orthodox economics can account for the 2008 financial crash October 30, 2013 ONE OF the more annoying false memes of recent years has been the notion that standard corporate finance models have not worked in or since the 2008 financial crisis, and that no orthodox economics account of that crisis has been offered. As someone who implements standard finance models, and has written orthodox economics accounts of [...]
Countrywide shares tumble as investors cash in £200m shares August 14, 2013 COUNTRYWIDE’S private equity backers Oaktree and Apollo sold £200m worth of shares in the estate agents yesterday, cashing in on the revival in the UK housing sector. The group saw shares fall 4.5 per cent last night following the share placing, which saw Oaktree and Apollo whittle down their shareholding in the company by [...]
Grafton keen on further growth after switching Irish roots for UK listing October 20, 2013 Gavin Slark, boss of the builders’ merchant, tells Kasmira Jefford what’s next for his company WHEN Gavin Slark was handed the toolbox and made chief executive of the Irish-based builders merchant two years ago, Grafton was in dire need of repairs. The global financial crisis had all but flattened the UK and Ireland’s construction market [...]
Ignore the cranks: Orthodox economics can account for the 2008 financial crash October 28, 2013 ONE OF the more annoying false memes of recent years has been the notion that standard corporate finance models have not worked in or since the 2008 financial crisis, and that no orthodox economics account of that crisis has been offered. As someone who implements standard finance models, and has written orthodox economics accounts of [...]