Unilever hit by sales slowdown in key markets October 24, 2013 UNILEVER, the consumer goods giant behind Wall’s ice-cream and Persil laundry detergent, reported a 6.5 per cent slump in turnover in the third quarter after suffering a dramatic slowdown in emerging markets. The FTSE 100 group has been hit by a slowdown in countries such as Indonesia, Brazil and India after uncertainty over whether the [...]
Qinetiq lines up interest in sale of US tech unit October 20, 2013 QINETIQ, the FTSE 250 listed defence firm, is considering plans to carve out its US unit amid an ongoing review into how to cash in on the flagging division. The former government-owned company, which was floated on the stock market in 2006, is understood to have slapped a for sale sign on its US Services [...]
Grafton keen on further growth after switching Irish roots for UK listing October 20, 2013 Gavin Slark, boss of the builders’ merchant, tells Kasmira Jefford what’s next for his company WHEN Gavin Slark was handed the toolbox and made chief executive of the Irish-based builders merchant two years ago, Grafton was in dire need of repairs. The global financial crisis had all but flattened the UK and Ireland’s construction market [...]
Benefits of Booker’s Makro deal start to show as profits rise 17pc October 17, 2013 Cash and carry group Booker reported higher first half sales and profits yesterday thanks to its recent acquisition of Makro, which the group said was helping to broaden the business. Sales in the 24 weeks to 13 September rose 16.5 per cent to £2.2bn on profits up 17 per cent to £58.1m. The food wholesaler [...]
BBA Aviation aims to appoint Sir Nigel Rudd as its new chairman October 15, 2013 SIR NIGEL Rudd, the outgoing chairman of Invensys, is expected to join the board of corporate jet firm BBA Aviation. Sir Nigel, who is also the chairman of Heathrow Airport Holdings, could be announced in the chair’s role at FTSE 250-listed BBA as soon as today, after the appointment was first reported by Sky News. [...]
Marks & Spencer chief heads charge against EU regulations October 14, 2013 BUSINESS leaders will this morning set out 30 EU regulations that they believe should be scrapped in order to help the British economy, in a boost for Prime Minister David Cameron’s plan to renegotiate a new relationship with Brussels. The business taskforce, headed by a team including Marks & Spencer chief executive Marc Bolland, was commissioned by the [...]
London Report: FTSE led higher by new Johnson Matthey boost October 14, 2013 THE FTSE 100 inched higher yesterday, led by catalytic converter maker Johnson Matthey on the back of an analyst rating upgrade, while the slow progress in US debt talks kept any broad market gains in check. The FTSE 100 closed up by 20.46 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 6,507.65 points, having climbed 2.4 per [...]
Royal Mail shares surge as seller Hargreaves Lansdown buckles under weight October 11, 2013 Royal Mail shares have surged this morning, rising as high as 456p after a debut of 450p, soaring above the offer price of 330p. Share seller Hargreaves Lansdown has seen its systems crash trying to deal with the sheer volume of trade; investors have taken to social media platform Twitter to air their frustration. More [...]
EE deal could see BT heading back to mobile October 10, 2013 BT IS poised to move back into the consumer mobile market after signing a deal to use EE’s network yesterday, 11 years after selling off its BT Cellnet business. Yesterday’s agreement will initially allow BT to provide mobile service to its 250,000 corporate customers using EE’s network, and could allow BT to offer a consumer service [...]
Just Eat’s sales sizzle as more restaurants join October 10, 2013 ONLINE takeaway network Just Eat enjoyed a 77 per cent jump in revenues last year, as 11,000 more restaurants joined its online service, taking its client list up to 32,000. Just Eat Group Holdings, which allows hungry customers to browse multiple takeaway menus, said it generated £59.8m across all of its businesses, £41m of which [...]