E.ON warns there is “no recovery in sight” as earnings fall August 13, 2013 German energy giant E.ON has warned the coming years will be “demanding” as first half earnings fell 15 per cent to €5.7bn (£3.7bn) on the back of bad and worsening business conditions. Chief executive Johannes Teyssen said that low capacity utilisation and wholesale power prices were hitting the generational and gas storage businesses. These adverse [...]
Royals to face government scrutiny over veto powers August 13, 2013 Members of the royal family's ability to veto government legislation that could affect their private interests is to be investigated by the government after questions were raised about the extent of Prince Charles' involvement in political affairs. The House of Commons' Political and Constitutional Reform Committee, chaired by Labour MP Graham Allan, will be looking [...]
Online sales growth helps New Look beat off cold weather August 13, 2013 Fashion retailer New Look has reoirted a 4.9 per cent annual increase in first quarter sales thanks to a 78.7 per cent jump in online sales. Chief executive Anders Kristiansen said he was “very encouraged by New Look’s robust trading performance”, particularly as it came in spite of the coldest spring in 50 years. He [...]
Spanish inflation rate slowdown meets expectations August 13, 2013 The Spanish consumer price index rose by 1.8 per cent annually in July, in line with expectations and down from a 2.1 per cent rise the month before. Month-on-month, consumer price inflation fell half a percentage point as expected, following the previous month’s 0.1 per cent rise. Harmonised across EU member states, the index rose [...]
Fall in permanent hiring hits Michael Page profits August 13, 2013 Recruitment specialist Michael Page has reported a 13.4 per cent increase in pre-tax profits and a 14.8 per cent boost to basic earnings per share in the first half of the year (release). Profits before tax rose to £32.0m from £28.2m in the same period the year before. Basic earnings per share increased to 7.0p [...]
British insurer Resolution posts better-than-expected results on strong UK growth August 13, 2013 UK life insurance company Resolution Limited has announced it made a pre-tax operating profit of £191m (£182m expected by Credit Suisse analysts) and operating earnings per share of 13.26p in the first half of the year, up 17 per cent from the same period the year before (release). The company said the value of new [...]
Before the open – 13/08 August 13, 2013 The Nikkei rose nearly two per cent last night as exporters benefited from a weaker yen and business confidence was buoyed by a media report. The Nikkei newspaper cited government sources saying the government is considering a corporate tax cut to offset the planned increase in the sales tax, which drove confidence, although it’s still [...]
US regulators approve GlaxoSmithKline’s HIV drug August 13, 2013 The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved GlaxoSmithKline’s drug Tivicay, used to treat the most common strain of HIV (release). Specialist HIV company ViiV Healthcare owns the drug, and is formed of a joint venture between GSK, Pfizer and Shionogi Limited. GSK is the largest stakeholder, with 76.5 per cent of the company. [...]
German consumer price inflation rate accelerates as expected August 13, 2013 The rate of increase in German consumer prices accelerated to 1.9 per cent in July compared to the year before, according to the latest consumer price index (CPI) from the Statistiches Bundesamt Deutschland. This was up from 1.8 per cent annual inflation recorded the month before and in line with analysts' expectations. Compared to June [...]
CNBC Comment: A property bubble propelled by fear August 12, 2013 HOW many UK seaside resorts claim to be “Chelsea-on-Sea”? There are at least a dozen in Cornwall and Devon alone. One of them is Salcombe – where I was holidaying last week, and which has more Chelsea 4x4s clogging up its narrow streets than SW10. This may not be relevant to you, but a [...]