View
video and Need to Know interactive heatmap
Economics
The economy: Official figures showed the economy contracted by 2.4 per
cent in the first quarter, rather than the 1.9 per cent estimated a month
ago, registering its most brutal slump for 50 years. The annual rate of
decline was revised to show a record plunge of 4.9 per cent, rather than the
4.1 per cent previously estimated.
Services sector: Figures showed that the services industries, which
account for three quarters of GDP, shrank in the first quarter by 1.6 per
cent, against a previously estimated decline of 1.2 per cent.
House prices: Nationwide said that the average property rose in value
by 0.9 per cent in June, after a 1.3 per cent rise in May. The annual rate
of decline was 9.3 per cent in June — the smallest fall since July 2008.
Banking structures: Some banking groups need to simplify their
structures, Paul Tucker, Deputy Governor of the Bank of England, said. He
added that banks should also give the central banks more information on how
they would cope if they ran into difficulties.
Repossessions: Homeowners face a second wave of repossessions next year
as unemployment and interest rates rise, according to Shelter, the housing
charity. It said that the number of repossessions could treble by 2011,
rising to 120,000, from 40,000 last year.
Industrial bank: The Engineering Employers Federation said that an
industrial bank should be set up to invest in industry and added that a
National Economic Council should also be established to ensure that
manufacturing is at the centre of a more diverse economy.
Balance of payments: The current account, the broadest measure of
Britain’s balance of payments, recorded a much larger than expected deficit
in the first quarter of £8.54 billion, 2.5 per cent of GDP, although this
was down from a revised £8.771 billion in the previous quarter.
Eurozone deflation: The 16- nation eurozone sank into mild deflation
for the first time as its annual inflation rate dropped to minus 0.1 per
cent for June.
Eurozone loans: Annual loan growth to businesses and households in the
eurozone slowed during May to 1.8 per cent, down from 2.3 per cent in April
and its lowest level since records began in 1992.
Irish economy: Figures showed that the Irish economy shrank at an
annual rate of 8.5 per cent in the first quarter after an 8 per cent decline
in the final three months of last year. But the fall was more modest than
the 9.1 per cent drop forecast by economists.
German unemployment: The number of people registered as unemployed in
Germany fell by 48,000 to 3.41 million during June, taking the rate to 8.1
per cent, from 8.2 per cent in May.
US consumer confidence: The New York-based Conference Board said its
consumer confidence index fell to 49.3 in June, from 54.8 in May. Economists
had expected it to rise to 55.
US Midwest business activity: The Institute for Supply
Management-Chicago’s gauge of business activity rose to 39.9 in June, from
34.9 in May, still well below the 50 reading which indicates contraction
rather than expansion.
US house prices: Figures showed that house prices in ten US
metropolitan areas fell by 1 per cent in April, the slowest pace in ten
months. The wider S&P/Case-Shiller Composite-20 index dropped by 0.9 per
cent in the month.
Banking &
finance
Stanford International Bank: The Serious Fraud Office said that it had
obtained a restraining order, requested by the US Department of Justice, on
more than $100 million (£61 million) of assets linked to Allen Stanford, the
Texas billionaire, and his alleged $7 billion investment fraud.
Keydata: PricewaterhouseCoopers, the accountancy group that was
appointed to sell the insolvent investment company, confirmed that it is no
longer attempting to sell the group as a going concern because of concerns
about irregularities in a number of investments. It said that it had
discovered problems linked to five of Keydata’s investment products,
affecting 42,580 investors and £645 million of assets.
Lloyds Banking Group: The finance house said that it plans to cut a
further 2,100 jobs, which will be the biggest reduction in the workforce
since the bank was created by the takeover of HBOS by Lloyds TSB in January.
It takes the total cull by Lloyds, since it acquired HBOS and was bailed out
by the taxpayer, to more than 7,000 jobs.
Banking bonuses: Lord Myners, the Treasury Minister, has criticised
bankers’ earnings and said that pay schemes based on share price performance
led to excessive risk-taking.
Construction
&
property
Wolseley: Chip Hornsby has stepped down as chief executive of the
construction group after an 80 per cent fall in full-year profits to £72
million and a forced £1 billion rights issue. He will be replaced by Ian
Meakins, former chief executive of Travelex Holdings, the foreign exchange
business.
Consumer
goods
Marston’s: Sources close to the brewer and pub operator have
played down reports of a shareholder revolt over its £176 million rights
issue, insisting there is “absolutely no chance” that the equity issue will
be blocked by investors at next week’s vote.
Engineering
Porsche: The German sports car maker said that the KfW state-owned
German development bank has rejected its application for €1.75 billion (£1.5
billion) of credit, but added that Qatar’s state investment fund has offered
to buy a stake in the group. Porsche is trying to alleviate the debt that it
ran up as it increased its stake in Volkswagen, the larger German carmaker,
in which it now holds a 51 per cent stake.
Health
Sanofi-Aventis: The French pharmaceuticals group said that it was
restructuring its research and development facilities in France and would be
closing four sites. It added that there would be no forced redundancies.
Abbott Laboratories: The American drugs maker said that it plans to
appeal against a $1.67 billion (£1 billion) patent infringement ruling in a
case involving two blockbuster drugs that treat rheumatoid arthritis and
other immune disorders. A jury in Texas had found that Humira, Abbott’s
bestselling drug, had violated a patent on Remicade, the Johnson &
Johnson treatment.
Industrials
China Iron and Steel Association: Iron ore price talks between Chinese
steel mills and global miners could drag on past their deadline, a source at
the China Iron and Steel Association said. This would threaten to end the
decades-old annual benchmark pricing system for the steel-making raw
material.
Leisure
Gala Coral: The debt-laden gambling operator is to shed up to 200 back
office staff and has confirmed that it is reviewing the future of five of
its bingo clubs, putting a further 100 jobs as risk. The announcement came
as Neil Goulden, the chairman of Gala Coral, met Treasury officials in an
effort to persuade them to reverse the tax rise announced in the Budget
that, it is forecast, could cost the bingo industry about £20 million a
year.
InterContinental Hotels Group: The world’s biggest hotel company is to
split its Asia Pacific division in two, with China becoming a separate
business unit because of its growing strategic importance. The move will
cost up to 20 jobs, including that of Peter Gowers, head of the Asia Pacfic
region, and will produce an estimated $10 million (£6 million) of cost
savings.
Harrah’s Entertainment: Mitch Garber, head of the US casino
group’s internet gaming operation, told eGaming Review magazine
that he was “very confident” that US legislators would relax the online
gambling ban and move to formal regulation of the industry.
Capital Pub Company: The operator of 25 mainly freehold London pubs
defied the gloom surrounding the sector by reporting a 7 per cent increase
in adjusted full-year pre-tax profits to £2.1 million and said that it had
no intention of joining the rights issue rush.
Media
Yell: The publisher of Yellow Pages directories said earnings
for the coming quarter were likely to be 30 per cent lower than last time
and added that talks were under way to refinance the group, which has £3.5
billion of debt.
Natural
resources
BP: A consortium led by BP, the London-listed oil and gas group, has
won the rights to develop the 17 billion barrel Rumaila oilfield in southern
Iraq, the country’s biggest oilfield, after Exxon-Mobil, its US rival,
dropped out of a televised auction in a disagreement with the country’s Oil
Ministry over fees.
BG: The oil and gas group, based in Berkshire, said that it will pay
$1.055 billion (£640 million) to Exco Resources, its US peer, for a 50 per
cent stake in a shale gas project in the United States. Shales are
sedimentary rocks that are rich in fossil fuels but are generally deemed too
expensive to be used in gas extraction.
Retailing
HMV: The music and video games retailer said that the collapse of
Woolworths and Zavvi, its rivals, late last year had helped it to increase
its market share and added that it is “confident” about the current year.
HMV’s full-year pre-tax profits were up by 11.5 per cent to £63 million,
slightly ahead of consensus forecasts.
Carpetright: The floor covering retailer reported a 72 per cent fall in
full-year pre-tax profits to £16.7 million, from £59.5 million a year ago,
despite continued growth from the company’s estate of European stores.
Like-for-like sales slumped by 13.5 per cent in the UK and Ireland. The
company predicted that “more normal” trading conditions were still more than
12 months away.
Support
services
Scott Wilson: The London-listed design and engineering consultancy
reported full-year adjusted operating profits of £22.6 million, flat on the
previous year but at the top end of analysts’ expectations. It added that it
expects growth in its international business to continue over the next year
but it did not see any recovery in the private sector property market in the
short term.
Safestore: The Hertfordshire storage company said that first-half
underlying earnings had risen by 4.3 per cent to £22 million and added that
it had begun the second half positively.
Technology
The Pirate Bay: Global Gaming Factory X, the Swedish software group,
said that it has purchased the Swedish filesharing website for SKr60 million
(£4.7 million).
Chinese internet filter: The country has delayed a plan that would have
required all new computers to come with a Chinese-made internet filtering
software program, according to the official Xinhua news agency.
Joost: The Dutch online video portal has announced a management
shake-up and job cuts and said that it plans to reinvent itself as a
technology provider.
Telecoms
Tiscali: The takeover of the Italian telecoms group by Carphone
Warehouse, the London-listed mobile phone retailer, has been approved by the
European Commission which ruled that the newly merged group would still face
strong competition in the sector.
Transport
Arriva: The transport group said that disappointing growth at its
CrossCountry rail franchise would affect first-half results. Revenue growth
slowed to 2.4 per cent in the first five months of 2009, down from the 4.5
per cent reported in the company’s last update two months ago.
National Express: The transport group has been rocked by the surprise
resignation of Richard Bowker, its chief executive.
Utilities
Novera Energy: The AIM-listed renewable power group said that
Aberdeenshire Council has approved its five-turbine Gordonstown Hill wind
farm, which will be located near Turriff and is expected to have a capacity
of between 10MW to 12.5MW.
Nuclear Installations Inspectorate: French plans to lead a nuclear
power renaissance in Britain suffered a blow when the regulator warned of
reservations about the safety of the reactor technology earmarked for use.
