Another step forward for “super-sewer” as Balfour Beatty clinches building £416m contract and Tideway pension consortium wins rights to own it August 24, 2015 A bit of good news for troubled builder Balfour Beatty, which this morning announced it had been awarded a £416m contract to build the £4.2bn giant Thames Tideway Tunnel, aka the controversial "super-sewer", as the tunnel's new owners slashed costs on the project. The company said its joint venture with Morgan Sindall and BAM Nutall [...]
Bunzl reports growth in revenue and profit as it announces four more acquisitions August 24, 2015 Bunzl has reported higher profit and revenue in the six months to the end of June, after it went on an acquisition spree. The figures Revenues at the outsourcer and distribution group rose seven per cent to £3.1bn in its first half, the company said this morning, while profit before income tax also jumped 11 per cent to £147.1m. Earnings per share [...]
China’s economic slowdown: State pension fund allowed to invest in stock market for first time August 24, 2015 China has given its state pension fund access to domestic stock for the first time ever, according to Chinese news agency Xinhua. Read more: FTSE hits 2015 low as China stocks plummet after sharp contraction in manufacturing Local governments will now be able to invest as much as 30 per cent of their pension [...]
Greek debt crisis: Rebel Popular Unity party make last ditch bid for power following split from Syriza August 23, 2015 A breakaway party of 25 MPs will take the opportunity to form a new Greek government today, but its leader Panagiotis Lafazanis acknowledges it will fail. The Popular Unity party broke away from left-wing Syriza after its leader Alexis Tsipras resigned as Prime Minister. Experts say the party will use the opportunity for publicity in [...]
Plenty of profit for UK partners after Deloitte reports strong earnings August 23, 2015 Deloitte UK partners received bumper payouts this year after high business confidence led to a robust company performance. The professional services firm’s revenue hit £2.71bn in the 12 months ending 31 May, up 6.4 per cent on the year before, it said this morning. Consultancy revenues led the way with a rise of 10.5 per [...]
Jeremy Corbyn backed by anti-austerity lobby August 23, 2015 More than 40 academics and activists, including a former member of the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee (MPC), have signed a public letter supporting hard-left Labour leadership hopeful Jeremy Corbyn. In an attempt to counter mounting criticism that the Islington North MP is too extreme in his views, the signatories, including former MPC [...]
Persimmon bosses to share in £600m payout under long-term bonus scheme August 23, 2015 The bosses of Britain’s largest housebuilder Persimmon are in line for a potential £600m-plus windfall after a bumper year fuelled by the housing market recovery. More than 130 of the group’s senior management are expected to share in the award in December as part of a long-term incentive scheme launched three years ago. In total, [...]
The decline of UK manufacturing: Companies say Britain is losing out to global rivals August 23, 2015 British manufacturers are worried about falling behind their overseas competitors, according to a new survey out today. EEF and Vodafone, who conducted the survey, said that while 94 per cent of UK manufacturers were engaged in innovation initiatives, most were concerned that they were not doing enough to stay competitive. Their sentiment matches the latest [...]
Global blues dragging down UK blue chips: Domestic strength has not been enough to buoy UK stocks August 23, 2015 Any drop of 10 per cent or more in the stock market over a short space of time is known as a “correction”. The FTSE 100 is well into correction territory. The index of the 100 biggest London-listed firms ended 2014 just above 6,500. It then surged past 7,000 to hit a peak of 7,104 [...]
New BHS owners Retail Acquisitions seek £70m refinancing to revive troubled chain bought from Sir Philip Green for just £1 August 23, 2015 The new owners of BHS are in talks to secure a refinancing package to help turn around the loss-making chain bought from Sir Philip Green earlier this year. Retail Acquisitions, a consortium comprising an eclectic mix of investors including former racing driver Dominic Chappell, is understood to be seeking a £70m loan by the end [...]