Editor's Picks
Burberry predicts 'top half' year
Wednesday 13 Oct 2010
Burberry’s underlying sales matched forecasts for the first half and the trendy clothing group is predicting full-year profit to be in the top half of the range of estimates. Underlying sales for the six months to 30 September jumped 17%, or 21% on a reported basis, to £641m. Comparable store sales rose 9%.
HMRC says 20% of tax demands were in error
Tuesday 12 Oct 2010
Fewer than 20% of taxpayers who have been told to pay more money to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) received the demands in error, a representative of the tax office said today.
Corn price nears two-year highs
Tuesday 12 Oct 2010
Corn prices continued rising Tuesday, approaching two-year highs, following last week’s announcement of a shortfall in production in the US.
Consumer inflation stays at 3.1%
Tuesday 12 Oct 2010
Steady overall inflation in September disguised sharp price movements within different categories, with food and clothes prices lifted by higher commodity costs, but second-hand car and air fare prices seeing falls.
FirstGroup allowed to scrap Scottish bus routes
Tuesday 12 Oct 2010
Bus and train group FirstGroup will be allowed to scrap seven bus routes in Glasgow and Edinburgh and modify eight others after the Competition Commission decided there was little chance of them becoming profitable.
Soco slumps on Vietnam results
Tuesday 12 Oct 2010
Shares in oil explorer Soco crashed by a fifth as it unveiled disappointing results from its latest drilling in Vietnam. The Te Giac Den appraisal well, TGD-2X, will be plugged and abandoned as oil and gas produced was not enough to be commercial. A decision as to the future of the TGD appraisal area will follow, Soco said.
Microsoft takes on Apple with new smartphone
Monday 11 Oct 2010
Microsoft has launched the group’s Windows Phone 7, a handset the company expects to rival Apple’s iPhone.
Government wastes millions, Sir Philip Green says
Monday 11 Oct 2010
The government is wasting millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money through inefficiency, according to a new report by the retail magnate Sir Philip Green, who was hired by the government to examine spending.
Betfair attracts enough interest for flotation
Friday 08 Oct 2010
Betfair has tempted enough investors for the online betting group to list on the London Stock Exchange, according to sources.
Easyjet pays up to keep name
Friday 08 Oct 2010
No-frills airline easyJet has agreed a settlement to its acrimonious dispute with founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou over its continued use of the 'easy' name. The price is not cheap. For the next fifty years, easyJet will have to pay an annual royalty of 0.25% of revenues, fixed at £3.9m and £4.95m in the first and second years respectively.
Thomas Cook and Co-op merge travel agents
Friday 08 Oct 2010
Holiday company Thomas Cook and the Co-operative Group are merging their high street travel agents and foreign exchange businesses. The deal creates Britain’s largest high street travel network with over 1,200 shops and will result in savings of more than £35m a year. Cook will own 70% of the new company, which will rank as the second largest provider of retail foreign exchange
Astra and Pozen's Vimovo gets EU approval
Friday 08 Oct 2010
Drugs companies AstraZeneca and Pozen said their jointly developed pain reliever Vimovo has received positive agreement for approval across 23 EU countries.
Footie margins recover at Ladbrokes
Friday 08 Oct 2010
The tail-end of the World Cup and weak 2009 comparative figures flattered third quarter results from Ladbrokes, the bookmaking firm, as the group announced it is on course to meet full year expectations.
Grainger wary over housing market
Friday 08 Oct 2010
Residential housing specialist Grainger will see a sharp fall in property sales this year, with the group warning that the near term outlook for the UK housing market and the wider economy will continue to be challenging. Most of the fall is due to the completion and sale last year of a development in North London. Trading profits will be better as margins have improved, Grainger said.
Betfair sets sights on FTSE 250
Thursday 07 Oct 2010
Online sports betting group Betfair could become a FTSE 250 company after saying it hopes to raise £1.16bn to £1.48bn ahead of its listing on the London Stock Exchange.
UK economy to slow says think-tank
Thursday 07 Oct 2010
Britain's economic growth has halved in the past three months, a leading economic think-tank predicted today.
House prices suffer September slump
Thursday 07 Oct 2010
House prices tumbled 3.6% last month, although the Halifax says it’s still “far too early” to call the start of another lengthy decline in the property market. The average cost of a home fell to £162,096 in September, according to the bank, leading to a 0.9% decline for the third quarter compared with the three months to June.
Halfords sales slip accelerates
Thursday 07 Oct 2010
Car parts and bikes seller Halfords is finding it an uphill struggle at the moment and slightly harder than analysts had imagined following recent warehouse disruption.
Rank sales rise despite economic worries
Thursday 07 Oct 2010
Strong trading across its divisions helped casino and bingo hall operator Rank to a 7% rise in like-for-like sales in the third quarter, leaving the company confident for the full year despite challenging economic conditions.
BP to develop Azerbaijan gas field
Thursday 07 Oct 2010
BP has signed a deal with Azerbaijan’s state oil company to explore and develop a deep water gas area in the Caspian Sea.
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