Bold Lancaster hands England debuts to Burrell and Nowell January 30, 2014 ENGLAND rugby coach Stuart Lancaster insists the door remains ajar for axed duo Chris Ashton and Ben Youngs despite showing his disregard for reputation by naming an experimental team for tomorrow’s Six Nations opener in France. Young Exeter wing Jack Nowell and Northampton centre Luther Burrell are set for debuts, Gloucester’s Jonny May is poised [...]
Albermarle & Bond profits crash by over 75pc as gold prices slide December 9, 2013 Troubled pawnbroker Albermarle & Bond (A&B) won't be feeling much better today. The company has been hit by multiple setbacks – most recently announcing on the 30 September that falling gold prices have created uncertainty over its future. Its final results for the financial year ended 30 June reveal that performance is markedly worse on [...]
Britain’s still great: Opportunities abound from the Northern Powerhouse to infrastructure revamp June 18, 2015 EUROPE REFERENDUM To the relief of many, the UK election turned out to be a simple affair. But while we avoided protracted wrangling over the make-up of the government, the key risk facing the UK now is the referendum on European Union membership. It is due to be held before 2017 – but some business [...]
Fresh probe for former Bradford & Bingley exec January 21, 2014 THE ACCOUNTING watchdog has launched an investigation into Chris Willford, the former finance director of bailed-out banking group Bradford & Bingley. The Financial Reporting Council’s probe comes a month after Willford was fined £30,000 by the Financial Conduct Authority for failing to alert the bank’s board to key financial risks ahead of B&B’s attempted rights [...]
Punch Taverns stock lifted by hopes of debt breakthrough December 9, 2013 PUB operator Punch Taverns rose nearly 10 per cent in trading yesterday after it said a complex plan to reduce its huge debt pile was on track – but agreement still needed to be reached with key bondholders. The company, which owns about 4,000 pubs across the country, said a new deal on one chunk [...]
Glencore enjoys surge in copper production as zinc and lead disappoint February 11, 2014 Mining giant Glencore has reported a surge in copper production of 26 per cent to 1.5m tonnes, while coal output rose four per cent in the year to 31 December. The strong performance of copper and coal helped offset weaker results from zinc and lead. Zinc output fell by nine per cent while lead suffered [...]
Ex-B&B finance chief fined for cash call failings December 12, 2013 THE FORMER finance director of Bradford & Bingley (B&B) has been fined £30,000 for failings related to a 2008 cash call, as the regulator forces board members to take responsibility for their actions. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said yesterday Christopher Willford had failed to alert the board to potential risks such as details about profits, [...]
Investors back BSkyB despite drop in profits January 30, 2014 INVESTORS remained confident in BSkyB yesterday, despite a 18 per cent drop in half year profits, as Britain’s biggest pay-TV broadcaster added over 100,000 new customers during its second quarter. Shares in Sky closed up 4.4 per cent on the results, which included news of a new deal with HBO to secure exclusive access to [...]
Video: Building collapses after New York explosion March 12, 2014 New York media sources report that emergency services have responded to a possible explosion and building collapse on East 114 Street. That's been confirmed by FDNY on Twitter. Their social media profile confirms that FDNY has 39 units and 168 members responding. The building in question is apparently a six story apartment building, located in [...]
Tomorrow’s Opec meeting and why the pressure’s on for oil next year December 3, 2013 It'd be unlikely that the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) doesn't freeze its output ceiling tomorrow. Speaking ahead of the cartel's meeting, Saudi oil minister Ali al-Naimi (pictured) told reporters today, "the market is in the best position it can be". But a note from investment bank Citi warns that pressure will mount [...]