US authorities probe trades in Heinz shares February 17, 2013 US securities regulators have filed a lawsuit against unknown traders in the options of ketchup maker HJ Heinz. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) alleges that traders acted on inside information before Heinz announced a deal to be acquired for $23bn (£14.8bn) by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway and Brazil’s 3G Capital. The suit marks the [...]
Zurich beats forecasts to hit £2.5bn profit February 14, 2013 INSURANCE giant Zurich yesterday beat expectations as it unveiled net profits of $3.88bn (£2.5bn) for 2012, an increase of three per cent on last year, helped by healthy returns from the company’s investment division. Although many other insurers have reported a largely disaster-free year, Zurich said it had suffered from “above average levels of catastrophe, [...]
City Moves for 14 February 2013 | Who’s switching jobs February 13, 2013 KNG Securities The fixed income specialist has announced the appointment of Armando La Morgia as a head of structured finance. He joins from Hemera Capital Management, where he focused on residential mortgage-backed and consumer asset-backed securities. Lewis Silkin Alex Kelham will join the City law firm as senior associate in its sports group. Kelham spent [...]
Hunt asks City to provide cover for old age care February 11, 2013 HEALTH secretary Jeremy Hunt yesterday called on the City to help solve the funding crisis in long term care by providing new savings products, as he confirmed care fees would be capped at £75,000 for the elderly from 2017. “People will need to prepare and plan for social care costs as much as people prepare [...]
Credit Suisse moves to cut more costs February 7, 2013 Credit Suisse is increasing its cost savings target, after fourth quarter profits came in below expectations. The Zurich-based bank said this morning it was upping its target to CHF4.4bn (£3.09bn) by the end of 2015, from its previous target of CHF4bn. Fourth quarter net profit came in at a lower-than-expected CHF 397m. Earnings were hit [...]
It’s Davos, but not as you know it February 3, 2013 DESPITE being a 30-something supposed grown-up, I must confess to still suffering from the occasional nightmare. While on duty as a night editor of this newspaper, for example, my sleep can be disturbed by a recurring dream in which I’m culpable for printing over 130,000 front page headlines of “UK ECOMONY DIPS AGAIN” (yes, reread [...]
St Moritz Gourmet Festival insiders’ guide January 27, 2013 AT THE heart of fine living is the art of fine dining. And both are flamboyantly showcased at the annual St Moritz Gourmet Festival this month. Every year the rich and famous flock to St Moritz for the season, and the town prides itself on the exquisite food and wine it has to offer them. [...]
Davos never fixes global economy January 21, 2013 ENOUGH is enough. No more snow please. As an Englishman, I know deep down we are atrocious at handling Alpine conditions in this country. Britain’s recent heavy snowfall is threatening to send the country flying into a triple dip (or whatever number we are up to now) recession, as the UK economy grinds to a [...]
Boris talks up London charm at City dinner January 17, 2013 WHAT would a Capitalist diary entry be, without a weekly update on loveable London Mayor Boris Johnson? And so, to the City’s Mansion House last night, where the Lord Mayor hosted the City Mayor for the London Government Dinner. Among the 300 guests gathered to hear BoJo’s musings on Europe were chair of London Councils [...]
Hotel industry to face slower growth in 2013 January 13, 2013 THE HOTEL sector is set to slow down in all of the major European cities this year, as continuing economic headwinds and increasing competition combine to hold back growth, a new study shows. PwC’s latest European hotel forecast published today predicts that though 2012 proved a resilient year for the sector, revenue per available room [...]