Asian markets slide on Iraq fears June 20, 2014 Asian markets are suffering losses as the deteriorating situation in Iraq weighs on investor sentiment. Crude futures received a boost after US President Barack Obama said he would send 300 military advisers to Iraq. Japanese shares were flat after a Reuters poll showed over half of businesses said they would consider investing in capital expenditure. [...]
Retail sales growth slump could be offset by World Cup revenues June 19, 2014 Retail sales dropped by 0.5 per cent in May, according to the latest estimates from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). A fall of that level had been forecast by economists. What they weren't expecting was the softer annual growth also reported. Year-on-year, sales rose by just 3.9 per cent in the year to May, [...]
World Gold Council summit set to reform shaky gold fix process June 18, 2014 Gold industry experts will meet next month to discuss reforms to the gold fix, after a series of setbacks for London’s historical price-setting organisation. The World Gold Council announced the sector’s summit yesterday, with a first meeting scheduled for 7 July. The group said that bullion banks, refiners, central banks, exchange-traded fund and miners would [...]
ABN Amro hikes pay to dodge EU’s cap on bankers’ bonuses June 18, 2014 THE TOP 100 bosses at Dutch bank ABN Amro would receive a 20 per cent pay hike to get around Europe’s bonus rules, the lender said yesterday. New EU rules will cap bonuses at 100 per cent of salary, or 200 per cent if shareholders agree. And ABN Amro is preparing to but bonuses to as little [...]
RBS cuts branch managers in London in latest efficiency drive June 18, 2014 NATWEST has cut more than 200 branch managers across England, Wales and London in a bid to drive costs. The RBS brand previously had five grades of branch manager and has reorganised them into just two grades – those who run big branches and those in charge of smaller sites. It is cutting 361 positions, then [...]
Daisy Group is on the hunt for more deals with new warchest June 17, 2014 DAISY Group, the Aim-listed telecoms provider, is targeting further acquisitions and has renegotiated its £200m borrowing facilities to fund new deals. Yesterday the firm reported its operating loss had widened 6.5 per cent to £17.9m during the year to 31 March, due to the increased costs associated with its recent purchases. “We’re highlighting that we [...]
Pat Burke to head HSBC in the United States June 16, 2014 HSBC’S US arm will be run by Pat Burke from November, the bank said yesterday. The 52-year-old is taking over from Irene Dorner, who has spent 32 years at HSBC. Incoming chief executive Burke has spent the last four years in charge of the US consumer finance division, a position he took in 2010 from Niall [...]
Shelf Drilling launching £300m London flotation June 12, 2014 DUBAI-BASED oil rig contractor Shelf Drilling yesterday unveiled its plans to float on the London Stock Exchange, to sell shares worth at least $500m (£297m). The firm, which provides offshore contract drilling services to oil and gas customers, intends to raise $250m from the issue of new shares, while an unspecified amount of shares held [...]
Small firms missing out on £46m swaps compensation from banks June 12, 2014 BRITAIN’S biggest banks have contacted every firm that might have been mis-sold interest rate swaps, the City watchdog said yesterday as the final 500 letters were sent out this month. So far, more than £1bn has been paid out in compensation. The year-long task took one month longer than planned. But now the process of [...]
Bottom Line: As the going gets tough, Justin King gets going June 11, 2014 There was a lot of back-slapping at Sainsbury’s yesterday, with Justin King talking up his successor, and his successor lavishing praise on the soon-to-depart chief executive. “When Justin started at the business we were serving 14m customers a week, and now we’re serving 24m a week. That’s a great achievement,” enthused Mike Coupe. King insists the [...]