John Wood to hand £665m to investors June 13, 2011 OIL field services provider John Wood Group is to return £665m to its shareholders through a one-off return of £1.40 per share, it said yesterday. The cash will be released to all shareholders as of 1 July through an issue of unlisted B and C shares that either pay a dividend or are bought back [...]
SFO asked to probe News International July 17, 2011 THE scandal threatening to topple Rupert Murdoch’s empire continued to gather pace yesterday, after the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) was asked to investigate News International. The SFO became involved after Labour MP Tom Watson wrote to the body asking it to investigate settlements made in the wake of the phone hacking scandal. Watson branded payments [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING August 1, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES SUPER RICH TO GET NEW LONDON ADDRESS A leading European hedge fund is preparing to build one of London’s most expensive housing developments as global investors scramble to gain a foothold in the capital’s resurgent residential market. In a deal completed over the weekend, Orion Capital Managers acquired an acre of prime residential [...]
BSkyB profits up as customers grow April 28, 2011 Satellite broadcaster BSkyB, a News Corp takeover target, has added 51,000 new subscribers in the past quarter, taking its customer base to 10.1m despite a tough UK economy. Growth was slower than the previous quarter but was towards the high end of analyst expectations. BSkyB also sold more products to its customers, driving annualised average [...]
Gone but not forgotten: tabloid paper lives on July 7, 2011 IT is fitting that Rupert Murdoch should end the News of the World era with such an audacious act. The story of how he bought the newspaper in January 1969 is similarly brazen, not just because he defeated Robert Maxwell in a closely fought bidding war, but because of all that followed. The News of [...]
Washington DC October 23, 2011 Food DC’s West End lies within an easy stroll of the White House, so there are plenty of opportunities for “power dining” among the area’s officials, lobbyists – and visitors alike. The Old Ebbitt Grill’s Oyster Bar is rightfully renowned, has an authentic Victorian interior, and being two blocks from the White House was a [...]
Washington DC October 23, 2011 Food DC’s West End lies within an easy stroll of the White House, so there are plenty of opportunities for “power dining” among the area’s officials, lobbyists – and visitors alike. The Old Ebbitt Grill’s Oyster Bar is rightfully renowned, has an authentic Victorian interior, and being two blocks from the White House was a [...]
Scandal will be a Lehman Brothers moment for media July 7, 2011 IN many ways, the disgusting scandal that has so stunningly and abruptly destroyed Rupert Murdoch’s News of the World (NotW) could prove to be a mini-Lehman Brothers moment for the media industry. As the dominos tumble, there will be more, as yet unknown, corporate victims. Seismic, uncontrolled changes are now afoot, at a time when [...]
Kingfisher in 19pc profit surge June 2, 2011 Warm weather and a drive to improve profit margins helped Kingfisher, Europe’s biggest home improvement retailer, to post a 19 per cent rise in first-quarter profit, broadly in line with expectations. The group, which runs market leader B&Q in Britain as well as Castorama and Brico Depot in France and elsewhere, said on Thursday it [...]
Kingfisher in 19pc profit surge June 2, 2011 Warm weather and a drive to improve profit margins helped Kingfisher, Europe’s biggest home improvement retailer, to post a 19 per cent rise in first-quarter profit, broadly in line with expectations. The group, which runs market leader B&Q in Britain as well as Castorama and Brico Depot in France and elsewhere, said on Thursday it [...]