Editor's Picks
BP gets the all clear in Brazil
Wednesday 11 May 2011
It has been a year in waiting, but oil titan BP has finally received approval by regulators to complete the purchase of ten Brazilian exploration and production blocks from Devon Energy. The Brazilian National Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels Agency (ANP) has been deliberating the $7.2bn deal since last March, following delays due to the Macondo oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Big rise in cable theft on railways
Tuesday 10 May 2011
Cable theft on the railways rose by 52% and caused over 6,000 hours of train delays last year, according to Network Rail. The infrastructure firm said thieves cost the railway industry around £16.5m in 2010/2011 by stealing the metal to sell as scrap. There were nearly 1,000 individual acts of theft throughout the year - a 52% jump on the previous year - leading to 6,088 hours of delays.
North Sea tax hike hurts BG
Tuesday 10 May 2011
Oil and gas group BG Group has become the latest to report the impact of higher taxes on North Sea oil production, saying they have reduced its first quarter earnings by $265m (£162m) and will impact production over the full year.
TUI Travel on course for FY
Tuesday 10 May 2011
Tour operator TUI Travel reduced half year losses, lifted its dividend and said it was on track to deliver full year results in line with expectations.
G4S sees continued improvement in organic growth
Tuesday 10 May 2011
International security solutions provider G4S said organic growth has started to improve in developed secure solutions markets and strong organic growth continues in developing markets.
IMPs' profits grow despite consumer pressures
Tuesday 10 May 2011
Half year results from Imperial Tobacco show cash-strapped smokers are making their own cigarettes rather than buying them in packs.
Pace warns on profits and margins
Tuesday 10 May 2011
The Japanese tsunami's effect on the supply chain is just one of the factors that has hit Pace's first quarter profits, prompting the set-top box maker to lower profits guidance for the year. For the full year the board now expects operating profit to be in the range of $150m to $170m (£97m - £110m) after the group battled against a number of factors which affected profitability and margins.
Banks cave in over PPI
Monday 09 May 2011
The banking industry has admitted defeat in its legal battle over the mis-selling of payment protection insurance (PPI). The British Bankers’ Association (BBA) announced on Monday it would not appeal against a ruling by the High Court in favour of tough new rules on selling PPI. The move follows a decision by Lloyds Banking last week to throw in the towel on the issue.
Barclays to take £1bn PPI hit
Monday 09 May 2011
Barclays is setting aside £1bn to cover the cost of mis-selling of Payment Protection Insurance (PPI), the bank has announced. It said it not participate in any application to appeal against a High Court Judgement dismissing a bid by the British Bankers’ Association to overturn a ruling that banks need to pay compensation to customers who were sold PPI without knowing they were buying it.
MENA turmoil hits Thomas Cook
Monday 09 May 2011
Travel company Thomas Cook said it remains well positioned to make progress this year despite losses arising from unrest in the Middle East and North Africa.
New North Sea oil taxes to hit Centrica
Monday 09 May 2011
Energy supplier Centrica expects profits growth in 2011 to be more subdued than previously anticipated due to the new tax regime on UK oil production. Centrica says the increase in the Supplementary Charge (SCT) rate from 20% to 32% on UK production announced in March in the Government’s budget offsets the benefit of higher commodity prices on its production business.
Inmarsat lifted by LightSquared agreement
Monday 09 May 2011
Satellite communications giant Inmarsat said total quarterly revenue rose 15% boosted by payments from its agreement with US telecom group LightSquared.
Lonmin rues miner deaths
Monday 09 May 2011
Platinum miner Lonmin said it is working to address the situation after six fatalities so far this year.
London pre-open: Profit takers hold sway
Monday 09 May 2011
After Friday afternoon's surge on the back of better than expected US jobless data investors looks set to be quick to bank profits at the start of the new week. City traders expect London's blue-chip index to open almost 30 points lower at around 5,947.
Serco pipeline gives comfort
Monday 09 May 2011
Outsourcing giant Serco is drawing comfort from its £29bn pipeline of identified opportunities despite some short-term headwinds in the UK, and is on course to hit its 2011 targets.
Monday newspaper round-up: Greece, Barclays, GDP
Monday 09 May 2011
The Chancellor has ruled out British participation in a further bailout of Greece as the eurozone grapples with the country’s debt crisis. George Osborne said yesterday that the UK had been a “reluctant partner” in Portugal’s rescue and would not be writing further cheques for the Greeks. His comments came as European finance ministers discussed how to handle Greece’s latest financial crisis,
Guoco offer 'undervalues' Rank
Monday 09 May 2011
Casino and bingo hall operator Rank has advised its shareholders against accepting a 150p a share offer for the company, saying it “significantly undervalues Rank and its prospects.” Malaysian investment firm Guoco on Friday announced after the close of trading on Friday that it bought an 11.6% stake in Rank, lifting its stake to 40.8% and triggering a mandatory offer.
Sunday newspaper round-up: NHS, Aberdeen boom, UK QE-II
Friday 06 May 2011
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg today vowed to veto the Government's planned NHS reforms unless the package put forward by Health Secretary Andrew Lansley is improved. Mr Clegg said unless there are "substantial, significant changes" to Mr Lansley's proposals to hand commissioning powers to GPs and extend private provision of NHS services, he will tell Liberal Democrat MPs and peers to vote them
Factory prices continue surging
Friday 06 May 2011
Prices for goods leaving factories continued surging in April though growth was slightly lower than in the previous month.
Lancashire upbeat despite quake
Friday 06 May 2011
Underwriter Lancashire Holdings took a big hit from the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, but still remains upbeat.
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