GDP and consumer confidence rises reflect UK growth – London Report February 22, 2015 GDP growth is this week likely to be confirmed at 0.5 per cent quarter-on-quarter for the final three months of 2014. That growth is likely to be reflected further on Friday with consumer confidence for February at a 12-year high. The corporate week starts today with reports from Associated British Foods, Bovis Homes, HSBC and [...]
Tobacco giant bids $3.5bn for Brazilian firm cigarette maker March 3, 2015 British American Tobacco (BAT) yesterday made a $3.5bn (£2.3bn) bid for the stake it doesn’t already own in Souza Cruz, Brazil’s biggest cigarette maker, taking advantage of a plunging real to expand in Latin America. BAT will pay 26.75 reais a share in cash for the 24.7 per cent stake it doesn’t already own, the [...]
Plain packaging sets scene for Irish court battle March 3, 2015 IRELAND has become the first country in the EU to pass a law requiring the plain packaging of cigarettes. The bill, which must be signed by the country’s president, makes Ireland only the second country in the world to remove branding from tobacco products. The packaging will be dark and plastered with warnings about the [...]
Ireland passes plain packaging of tobacco law as UK anticipates legal battle March 3, 2015 The Republic of Ireland has become the first country in the EU to pass a law requiring the plain packaging of cigarettes. The bill, which must be signed by the country's President, makes Ireland only the second country in the world to remove branding from tobacco products. The packaging will be dark and plastered with [...]
CBI: Plain cigarette packaging vote is bad for the UK March 10, 2015 Britain’s top business group has urged parliamentarians to strike down government plans that would see cigarettes sold in plain, unbranded packaging from May 2016. The intervention by CBI director general John Cridland is a significant step for a major business figure to take so near to a General Election, and may damage the Conservatives’ claim [...]
How did they do it? The strategies of the world’s greatest investors June 18, 2015 WARREN BUFFETT THE MOST SUCCESSFUL INVESTOR EVER Now aged 84, Nebraska-born Warren Buffett was the most successful investor of the twentieth century. Known as the “Oracle of Omaha” for his wisdom, at one point he was the richest man in the world with an estimated net worth of $71bn. Buffett is a [...]
Bill Gates and Michael Bloomberg set their sights on tobacco industry March 19, 2015 Two titans of capitalism have combined efforts to launch a new front in their war against the tobacco industry. Microsoft founder Bill Gates and ex-New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg are throwing their weight behind a scheme to help governments of poorer nations defend anti-tobacco laws from legal challenges. The assault on tobacco has been ongoing [...]
British American Tobacco sees volumes fall despite emerging market growth April 30, 2014 British American Tobacco (BAT) has reported a fall in revenue of 12 per cent at current rates of exchange for the three months ended 31 March. The decline in revenue was attributed to lower volume and the timing of price increases. The tobacco giant's cigarette volume from subsidiaries declined by one per cent 158bn, with [...]
Deutsche Bank’s client growth helps firm leap up adviser table March 2, 2015 DEUTSCHE Bank was the big winner in the first-quarter adviser rankings making gains in both the stockbroker and financial adviser categories in terms of client market capitalisation, according to figures from Adviser Rankings. The Frankfurt-based investment bank, which boasts clients such as British American Tobacco, Unilever and Greene King, stood out as the biggest climber [...]
Megabrew is here: Now that SABMiller and AB InBev have reached a deal the real hangover begins November 11, 2015 Anheuser-Busch InBev’s £71bn takeover of SABMiller, the biggest ever British corporate merger, is poised to leave a bitter taste in the mouth with thousands of job cuts, a de-listing from the London Stock Exchange and the shuttering of SAB’s Mayfair offices all in the pipeline. AB InBev said the deal, confirmed yesterday, will result in $1.4bn (£920m) in efficiency [...]