BSkyB sees surge in new TV subscribers May 1, 2014 BSkyB has reported a slowdown in profit before tax to £793m for the nine months to 31 March, compared to £966m for the same period the previous year. The FTSE 100 company saw revenue climb by seven per cent to £5.6bn, with earnings per share suffering a fall of 3.4 per cent 42.2p. New paid-for [...]
Investors balk at pub landlord’s debt restructure May 27, 2014 DISGRUNTLED investors wiped almost 30 per cent off the value of Punch Taverns yesterday after the indebted pub company said it is nearing a deal to restructure its £2.3bn debt mountain, which could see it offer bondholders a debt for equity deal. “We’ve made substantial progress with groups including the ABI,” said a person close [...]
One chart that shows how the federal shutdown hit the US economy October 22, 2013 Despite having avoided a US government default, the economic damage of the temporary October shutdown can't be so easily undone. We're beginning to see data releases for those weeks now, and they're beginning to reveal a grim economic picture. Betsey Stevenson of President Barack Obama's Council of Economic Advisers has pointed to this chart: We'll [...]
What you need to know before the open May 12, 2014 European markets are set to open lower this morning, following Asian counterparts, as investors await with caution for events in Ukraine to unfold. Yesterday, anti-Kiev rebels declared victory in a referendum on self-rule in eastern Ukraine. Western leaders are threatening further sanctions around energy and the financial services, if Moscow moves to disrupt the planned [...]
Desmond’s Channel 5 sold to US media group Viacom for £450m May 1, 2014 RICHARD Desmond has agreed to sell Channel 5 to media group Viacom for £450m in a deal that will see the US broadcaster expand its worldwide footprint. The deal, which was signed on Tuesday and announced yesterday, sees Desmond’s holding company Northern & Shell receive a return of more than four times the £103.5m investment [...]
Punch breaks debt obligations as restructuring talks continue April 15, 2014 STRUGGLING pub operator Punch Taverns has breached its debt obligations relating to part of its £2.3bn debt mountain, the company said yesterday. Punch’s debt structure is complex and split into two securitised vehicles. Punch A holds £1.45bn of gross debt, while Punch B holds £884m. The firm breached a debt covenant related to Punch A [...]
B&Q owner Kingfisher confirms exclusive talks to buy Mr Bricolage April 3, 2014 B&Q and Screwfix owner Kingfisher has announced it’s entered exclusive talks to acquire Mr Bricolage, a French home improvement retailer. Should the deal being discussed go through, FTSE 100 company Kingfisher would initially acquire 68.1 per cent of the firm’s share capital – from the majority shareholders – making a subsequent offer to buy shares [...]
Offshore wind projects get £4m March 18, 2014 The government yesterday said it has awarded over £4m to four offshore wind projects, which will use the funding to streamline the design and installation of offshore wind turbines, to reduce costs. It claims the 2-B Energy project in Fife, which received £2.8m, could bring down the cost of offshore wind by as much as [...]
French bidding kicks off for football rights April 7, 2014 BIDDING for the Champions League football television rights in France is expected to start today, a process likely to be watched closely by UK broadcasters BT and BSkyB as they prepare for the upcoming Premier League auction early next year. Qatar-owned Al Jazeera, via its sport channel beIN Sports, and Canal Plus, owned by Vivendi, [...]
London Report: FTSE ends flat as Royal Mail warns of rivals May 22, 2014 THE FTSE 100 fell slightly yesterday on the back of a mixed picture of the latest Purchasing Managers Index surveys – with China and the US reporting good results while France’s were poor. The market closed down 0.48 points at 6820.56, a drop of 0.01 per cent. The biggest climber of the day was global [...]