Lampard saves sloppy Blues December 20, 2009 CARLO ANCELOTTI admitted his Chelsea side were feeling the pressure of a hectic winter schedule after being held by London rivals West Ham in a tale of two penalties. Alessandro Diamanti’s spot-kick on the stroke of half-time gave the Hammers a deserved lead before Frank Lampard rescued the Blues with a thrice-taken penalty after Matthew [...]
TRAVEL NOTES November 22, 2009 Discount family trips to AsiaTravel Indochina is offering a free place for one child when a family of four books any family tour this November for departures in January, February or March 2010. Offerings include a 10-day journey to Cambodia, which kicks off with a street level tour of Phnom Penh and features a leisurely [...]
Britain’s last chocolatier sets down a gauntlet for his Kraft successor February 10, 2010 WARTIME is over for Roger Carr. Having held up his head defiantly throughout a five-month hostile bid battle from US food giant Kraft, the former Cadbury chairman is looking considerably more relaxed in demeanour nowadays, though his bruised rhetoric speaks volumes. Carr, in a speech on “Hostile Bids and Takeovers” at the Saïd Business School [...]
British Airways staff to vote on Christmas strike action November 8, 2009 Passengers flying on British Airways over Christmas are bracing themselves for mayhem after 2,500 cabin crew backed union leaders’ decision to call a strike vote at a mass meeting. The ballot – in protest over the company’s imposed job cuts and two-year pay freeze – will start next week and close on 14 December. Unite [...]
Banks and miners lift FTSE but retail shares take a dive January 14, 2010 STRENGTH in miners helped Britain’s top share index to a 0.5 per cent rise by yesterday’s close after soaring output figures from Rio Tinto boosted the sector, but retailers fell on weak trading updates. The FTSE 100 ended 24.72 points higher at 5,498.20 after falling for two days, pressured by China’s decision to tighten banks’ [...]
THE TIPSTER December 14, 2009 SPORTS retailer Sports Direct is continuing to do well, rising to as high as 110p last week after opening Monday’s trading session at 102p. The stock lost some ground towards the end of the week, but there could be another recovery to come in the run up to Christmas. ShortsandLongs.com has a rolling spread of [...]
A drop in temperature makes some brands hotter December 1, 2009 WE all like to “make up our own minds” about brands, and recommend to our friends those with which we have had positive dealings. However, rather than being wholly our own self-determined opinions, these recommendations tie in with the seasons much more readily than we might think. Some “seasonal brands” like The North Face and [...]
A IS FOR… A TOUCH OF ACRIMONY AT ALCHEMY February 2, 2010 PROOF, if it were needed, that the old adage about time being the best healer does not always ring true. Private equity veteran Jon Moulton is in the preliminary throes of building his new business, Better Capital, after quitting his former firm Alchemy Partners last September amid a boardroom bust-up over strategy. (His resignation letter [...]
MANDY UNLEASHES HIS SHARP WIT AT BUSINESS FOR EUROPE DEBATE January 14, 2010 IT’S good to know that it’s not only opposition politicians who are subjected to the sting of Lord Mandelson’s acerbic tongue, but members of his own party as well. Mandy was yesterday morning in attendance at City superspinner Roland Rudd’s Business for New Europe event at the grand Victoria Embankment headquarters of investment bank JP [...]
HUMAN LIE DETECTOR BOOSTED BY CITY COMPANIES ON THE WARPATH December 20, 2009 WE ALL know businesses are rather jumpier than usual given the difficult ride they’ve had over the course of the recession, but I hear some are taking truly unprecedented steps to counter risky office behaviour. Darren Stanton, who calls himself a “human lie detector”, tells me he has seen a surge in requests from corporates [...]