London defies slow UK real estate market July 4, 2011 GROWING demand for office space and a booming London market are offering some hope for the UK’s ailing commercial property market, a new survey revealed today. And while the residential property sector continues to slump across the UK, house prices at the top end of the London market are expected to rise by nine per [...]
FTSE commodities drop on fear over Fed announcement September 21, 2011 BRITAIN’S top shares dropped back yesterday, led by weakness in commodity issues as investors nervously awaited the outcome of a US Federal Reserve meeting with expectations for further economic stimulus seen as already discounted. The FTSE 100 closed down 75.30 points, or 1.4 per cent at 5,288.41, retreating after a two per cent bounce on [...]
RESTAURANT KING CLAIMS RAMSAY BID IS A GAMBLE September 20, 2011 THE jury is out as to whether Gordon Ramsay’s Bread Street Kitchen – the One New Change venture dubbed “the acceptable face of high street food” – will prove a hit. “Whatever anyone says about Gordon, he knows what people want and he is incredibly resilient,” said restaurant expert Simon Davis, speaking at last night’s [...]
G4S shares plunge after £5.2bn offer October 17, 2011 INVESTORS took fright yesterday after security firm G4S revealed plans to buy ISS from its private equity owners in a £5.2bn deal. Shares in G4S plunged more than a fifth after it said it would pay £1.53bn in an even split of cash and shares for the Danish facilities management group. It will raise £2bn [...]
Mortgage lending on the increase July 20, 2011 GROSS mortgage lending picked up strongly in June, according to figures released yesterday. Lending came in at £12.6bn, up 16 per cent from the £10.8bn lent in May. Yet the figure was still nearly three per cent lower than at the same time last year, showing that the UK’s sluggish housing market is not out [...]
Tensions rising again in the markets August 25, 2011 WHEREVER one looks, there is danger in the air. Global equities are down 10.2 per cent in August and 11.3 per cent in the year to date. European and UK shares are down 13 and 10.4 per cent respectively in August, and 16.8 per cent and 11.5 per cent so far this year, Evolution Securities [...]
THE TIPSTER STERLING ON A HIGH VS DOLLAR March 1, 2011 THE pound has broken through £1.6300 against the greenback for the first time in over a year, amidst signs of an upturn in the UK housing market. Strength here is going to make it that bit easier for the Bank of England to start hiking interest rates in the months ahead. Combined with renewed investor [...]
THE WEEK AHEAD in association with GFT August 21, 2011 COMPANY NEWS ● Petrofac posts its interim results today. With oil prices dropping from their recent highs coupled with a market slump, oil companies have taken a bit of a knock of late, with their interim reports reflecting this downturn. Petrofac will be hoping that its results buck this trend. ● Another energy industry player, [...]
Moody’s loses patience as US debt talks ramble on July 18, 2011 CREDIT rating agency Moody’s said yesterday that the US should scrap its debt ceiling entirely. The legislative cap creates “periodic uncertainty”, Moody’s argued, suggesting that America could adopt a “fiscal rule” to restrain deficit build-ups instead. The statement preceded another day of political sparring in the US. The possibility of America defaulting on its debts is “off [...]
Following Soho’s Norman invasion October 19, 2011 RUSSELL NORMAN was the former operations director at Caprice Holdings, where he launched concepts such as the Ivy Club with Mark Hix, chef director at the time. He left in 2008 to set up Polpo, a Venetian bacaro, which serves small Italian plates in an informal setting. Following Polpo’s success (which was recently named 25th [...]