M&B toasts a dining uplift November 26, 2009 PUBS group Mitchells & Butlers yesterday said it was optimistic about Christmas trading as it switched to a food focus to compensate for slower drinks revenue. The group said that it has recently introduced its “winter menu” to take advantage of the rise in consumer confidence, which has sparked people to splash out on good [...]
F&C DITCHES THE DORCHESTER FOR A LEANER SHOWING AT PING PONG November 25, 2009 THINGS may be looking up in terms of the economy, but the corporate Christmas goose is looking just as lean as it was in the depths of the financial crisis last year – and a little bird tells me that asset management firm F&C Investments is among the companies trimming its budget. Usually, F&C staffers [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING November 25, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES INVESTORS TO SIGN AVTOVAZ AID DEALShareholders in Russian car maker Avtovaz will sign a rescue deal for the near-bankrupt firm at a meeting near Paris this week, Yuri Ushakov, the Russian Prime Minister’s deputy chief of staff, said yesterday. SATYAM SHARES TUMBLE OVER FRESH CHARGESShares in Mahindra Satyam, the fraud-hit IT services group, [...]
EasyJet warns of a tough winter ahead November 17, 2009 BUDGET airline easyJet yesterday warned the aviation industry is in for a tough winter as it revealed its pre-tax profit halved over the past year despite customers trading down to cheaper transport options. Reported pre-tax profit at the airline fell 50.4 per cent to £54.7m in the year to September, down from £110.2m in 2007, [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING November 16, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES MOBILE MAKERS ACT TO CURB FAKE PHONESThe global mobile phone industry is trying to rein in the rapid worldwide spread of illegitimate handsets by introducing a stricter regime for the allocation of handset identification numbers. The move comes as unlicensed Chinese handset manufacturers have started flooding the world market with exports in a [...]
Virgin Media halts disposals November 15, 2009 Virgin Media is believed to have put plans to sell a basket of television channels on hold, as it looks at ways to secure the best price. The pay-TV broadcaster is thought to have been mulling a sale of the £160m-worth of assets, including Living, Bravo and Trouble, and to have narrowed potential buyers down [...]
The best places to splash the cash with discretion November 11, 2009 MARCUS Wareing recently told City A.M. that ever since the start of the financial crisis, the phones have been ringing off the hook of his restaurant at the Berkeley Hotel with enquiries about the private dining room. “People are spending money,” he said. “They just don’t particularly want to be seen doing it.” It seems [...]
Banks are in the dock as litigation lawyers look for soft City targets November 9, 2009 LAUNCHING a lawsuit against a major bank has never been easy. As anyone who has been involved in heavyweight litigation knows, the process of bringing a claim of any kind is expensive, hazardous and distracting. Regardless of the merits, no bank is likely to roll over very easily when faced with legal action. In order [...]
Bent and Huddlestone get the nod from Capello November 8, 2009 IN-FORM Darren Bent has been handed a chance to fight for a World Cup place after being named in Fabio Capello’s England squad for next week’s friendly with Brazil. The Sunderland striker has been named in the 24-man party along with former Tottenham team-mate Tom Huddlestone and Aston Villa’s Stephen Warnock as Capello looks to [...]
The City lawyer who argues that banking has become even riskier November 4, 2009 T o David Morley, the phrase “it is better to travel than to arrive” must sound pretty strange, an expression invented only for those unfortunate souls who have not learnt to move at speed. For Morley, who joined top law firm Allen & Overy in 1980 and has led it as senior partner since last [...]