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 [...]
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: BT falls on Sky’s sports news as FTSE closes flat June 10, 2014 AFTER two days of gains in which the FTSE 100 moved ever closer to its record high, London’s main share index yesterday dipped slightly as warring pay TV broadcasters dragged on the index. The London market closed on 6873.55, down 1.45 points or 0.02 per cent. BT Group fell 2.36 per cent to 396.50, the [...]
Kingfisher returns £200m to shareholders March 25, 2014 KINGFISHER, the owner of DIY chains B&Q and Screwfix, announced plans to hand £200m to shareholders as brighter prospects in the UK helped boost its full-year performance, sending shares up six per cent yesterday. Finance director Karen Witts said it will launch a multi-year programme starting with £200m in this financial year – its first [...]
Heathrow noise row stoked by new claim that 1m are affected February 23, 2014 HEATHROW is braced for a noisy argument this week as a new report is set to state that more than 1m people are irritated by plane noise from the west London airport, far more than the figures claimed by the airport and the government. Academics will say that people are annoyed by noise above 50 [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 23 May 2014 May 22, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Corrupt companies face higher fines British companies that bribe foreign officials to win contracts, commit fraud, or launder money, face fines of up to 400 per cent of their illicit profits, under new penalty guidelines. In the most serious cases companies will pay fines comparable with those meted out in the US, where [...]
Bookies lifted by relief over gaming curbs April 30, 2014 INVESTORS in high street bookmakers breathed a sigh of relief yesterday after new measures to curb gambling did not go as far as expected. Shares in William Hill and Ladbrokes rose after the government unveiled plans to let local authorities block new betting shops opening up on high streets and forcing bookmakers to keep track [...]
Balderton starts $300m tech fund April 1, 2014 LONDON tech startups are being targeted as part of Balderton Capital’s new $305m (£183m) early stage investment fund for Europe, that it announced yesterday. Balderton, the tech venture capital fund whose investment record includes Lovefilm and Betfair, said the new fund would focus on companies seeking Series A funding – which is funding that was [...]
Kingfisher bids for French rival Mr Bricolage April 3, 2014 EUROPE’S biggest home improvement retailer Kingfisher has bolstered its presence in France by agreeing to buy smaller rival Mr Bricolage for €275m (£227m) including debt. The B&Q owner, which makes about half of its annual profit in France, said it has entered exclusive talks to buy 26.2 per cent of the share capital from the [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 06 June 2014 June 5, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Juncker won’t give in to Cameron A defiant Jean-Claude Juncker has warned Britain that he will not bow to David Cameron’s objections or yield to press coercion in his bid to become European Commission president. The former Luxembourg prime minister told a private gathering of party colleagues that he was seeking a broad [...]