Steve Easterbrook sees problems stack up on his plate at McDonald’s March 9, 2015 Fast-food giant McDonald’s yesterday revealed that customers were “lovin’ it” a lot less after unveiling another slide in worldwide sales, for the ninth month in a row. Worldwide sales fell 1.7 per cent, where analysts polled by Consensus Metrix had been expecting a 0.3 per cent decline. In the US, sales at restaurants open at [...]
WPP’s Sir Martin Sorrell slams critics of his pay deals March 9, 2015 WPP boss Sir Martin Sorrell hit back at criticism that his remuneration was excessive yesterday, saying that if you personally risked investing in and building a business from scratch to the global leadership position in its sector it would be only natural to be rewarded for it Sorrell, who saw off a shareholder revolt over [...]
Coffee-to-go speculation at Tesco as another top executive departs March 9, 2015 TESCO yesterday lost another senior executive after the man in charge of its in-store dining, Michael Holmes, stepped down. Holmes served as the director of a number of Tesco’s businesses, including restaurant chain Giraffe, coffee shop Harris + Hoole, in-store restaurant Decks and Tesco’s Euphorium bakeries. The exit follows a string of departures that have [...]
Cobbold is back on board after two month absence from UBM March 9, 2015 TIM COBBOLD was back at the helm of UBM yesterday after his absence from the events group left the company rudderless since January. The chief executive has taken the past two months off due to an unspecified operation. However, the timing was less than ideal as it coincided with the absence of the company chairman [...]
Alcoa buys RTI International Metals in bid to boost aerospace arm March 9, 2015 US metal manufacturer Alcoa is to pay $1.3bn (£860m) for RTI International Metals, in a stock-for-stock deal with an enterprise value of $1.5bn. Alcoa, which is best known as an aluminium producer, said yesterday that the deal will boost its aerospace business. RTI specialises in titanium and products and services for the commercial aerospace, defence, [...]
Antofagasta copper production hit by protests at Chilean mine March 9, 2015 Mining company Antofagasta yesterday revealed that copper production has been reduced by an estimated 5,000 tonnes as a result of ongoing protests at the Los Pelambres mine in Chile. Protestors are seeking action by Pelambres and the government to help alleviate the current drought conditions in the area. Antofagasta said discussions regarding water availability have [...]
Goldman Sachs warns oil price will fall again March 9, 2015 OIL PRICES could fall again, reversing the rebound rally the commodity has experienced in recent weeks, Goldman Sachs has warned. According to analysts at the bank, the fact that the pricing rally is so premature has kept it “expecting that prices will remain below the current forward curve in 2015”. “While we reiterate our out-of-consensus [...]
SABmiller eyes up African beer market growth March 9, 2015 Affordable brands and more disposable income were the key to success said SABMiller yesterday, as it claimed the African market was coming of age. The multinational beverage company said the continent was showing great promise as a market for beer and SABMiller was best-placed to capitalise on the opportunity. The firm said the average beer [...]
BrewDog to craft 130 new jobs as demand for its product soars March 9, 2015 Speciality beer firm BrewDog yesterday announced its intention to create up to 130 new jobs as it seeks to capitalise on soaring demand for craft ales. The Aberdeen-based brewer was founded in 2007 and has seen rapid expansion in recent years and now exports beers and ales to more than 50 countries. The company, set [...]
Balfour Beatty in £250m deal to manage London’s flood defences along Thames Estuary March 9, 2015 Infrastructure firm Balfour Beatty has been signed up to help strengthen London’s flood defences as part of the 10-year Thames Estuary asset management programme. The company said yesterday the contract would be worth up to £250m. The programme, led by engineering consultancy CH2M Hill, is aimed at managing tidal flood defences along the 170km of [...]