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Economics
Loan repayments: Consumers paid off their debts at a record rate in
October, raising fears about the pace of the economic recovery. Policymakers
are relying on a rise in consumer spending to help to drag the country out
of recession, but there is mounting concern that consumers’ efforts to repay
loans and credit card balances will curb spending.
Mortgage lending: Mortgage approvals for new home buyers rose to 57,345
in October, the highest level since March 2008. But the number of remortgage
deals approved fell to 24,596 from 25,425, official figures showed.
Money supply: The Bank of England’s preferred measure of money supply
shrank at an annualised rate of 5.3 per cent in the three months to October,
compared with a 0.7 per cent fall from July to September. Overall M4 rose
10.8 per cent in the year to October.
Eurozone inflation: Eurozone consumer prices rose in November, after
five months of deflation. Inflation in the 16-country area rose 0.6 per cent
year-on-year after a 0.1 per cent decline in October. Economists had on
average expected a 0.4 per cent increase.
US economic activity: The Chicago business index compiled by the
Institute for Supply Management rose to 56.1, from 54.2 in October, the
highest level since August 2008. A reading above 50 indicates expansion in
the regional economy.
Canadian GDP: The Canadian economy emerged from recession in the third
quarter after three quarters of contraction. GDP rose at an annualised rate
of 0.4 per cent between July and September.
Japan deflation: Masaaki Shirakawa, Japan’s central bank chief, said
for the first time that the country was in a state of deflation and added
that he was watching currency movements “with great concern” as the yen
remained at record highs.
India: The country’s economy grew at a far stronger rate than predicted
in the second quarter of the fiscal year as poor farmers weathered a late
monsoon, civil servants enjoyed a pay rise and the service sector boomed.
Policymakers had argued that strong domestic demand and conservative banking
practices would insulate India from an ailing Western economy.
Banking
&
finance
Dubai World: The Government of Dubai has refused to honour the debt
obligations of its largest company, prompting fears that international
creditors could be wiped out. Dubai World, the state-owned conglomerate, was
effectively abandoned to its fate by the Government, despite assumptions
that Dubai would stand behind the company.
Lloyds Banking Group: The bank is set to cut another 535 jobs after
deciding to close a customer support centre in southeast England at the end
of May. The retail bank said that 162 employees’ roles would be redeployed.
Citigroup: The bank named Willem Buiter as the bank’s new chief
economist to replace Lewis Alexander. Mr Buiter will take up his post in
January 2010.
Société Générale: The French bank has poached Royal
Bank of Scotland’s top European energy banker to head its UK investment
banking team as it seeks to bulk up its advisory business. Fiona Paulus will
join the bank at the end of January as head of UK client coverage and
investment banking.
Aberdeen Asset Management: The UK’s largest listed fund management
group said that there had been a sharp slowdown in the number of investors
leaving as conditions improve in equity markets. The company experienced an
exodus of £29.8 billion in the year to September 30, but said that this
eased in the second half.
Correction: Dubai International Capital owns less than 20 per cent of
Merlin Entertainments, which was described in a graphic in yesterday’s
newspaper as a “trophy Dubai asset”.
Construction
&
property
Housebuilding: An increase in the average price of a new-build property
last month has boosted hopes of a tentative recovery in the housing market,
amid a shortage of stock and growing interest from buyers. The value of a
typical new-build home increased by 1.3 per cent to £214,909 in October,
according to figures released by SmartNewHomes.com, a property website.
Consumer
goods
Cadbury: The chocolate maker is preparing to defend itself against a
£9.8 billion bid from Kraft, the US food group. Kraft will send an offer
document directly to Cadbury shareholders.
Pittards: The leather goods company has acquired the Ethiopia Tannery
Share Company (ETSC) for 70 million Ethiopian Birr (£3.8 million). ETSC is
Ethiopia’s largest tannery and has been operated under Pittards’ supervision
since August 2005 in return for a monthly management fee and royalty
payments.
C&C Group: The owner of Magners Irish Cider has closed the gap on
Heineken’s Bulmers operation by swallowing the Gaymers Cider Company in a
£45 million deal, adding brands including Blackthorn, Olde English and
Gaymers.
Engineering
EngineeringUK: The body that promotes the sector says that more than
half a million engineers and manufacturing workers will be needed over the
next eight years in industries ranging from transport and construction to
aerospace and defence. It highlighted barriers to achieving the figure,
including a diminishing pool of talent and fewer students studying for
manufacturing and engineering degrees.
Mahindra & Mahindra: India’s leading utility vehicle maker has
signed an agreement with BAE Systems, the world’s No 2 defense contractor,
to set up a joint venture defense company in India. The initial investment
will be $21.25 million (£13 million).
Vauxhall: Management and union leaders at the carmaker are stepping up
their efforts to find a new model or manufacturing partner for its Luton
plant, where the Vivaro van is made, after announcing more than 350 job cuts
at the operation.
Saab: Officials from Saab and the Swedish Government have travelled to
Detroit in a final attempt to help General Motors to find a solution for the
troubled Swedish carmaker.
Health
GlaxoSmithKline: The British drug company will provide laboratories and
equipment to test athletes competing at the London 2012 Olympics for banned
drugs. GSK, Europe’s biggest drugmaker, said that it would make one of its
British research and development sites available to provide around-the-clock
testing facilities.
Immunodiagnostic Systems: The diagnostic kits maker reported a
threefold rise in first-half profit as sales across all its products rose.
It said that it was comfortable with market forecasts for the full year. The
company said that it expected its American business to grow by up to 80 per
cent in the next 12 months.
Industrials
MAN: The German industrial group could face up to €300 million (£274
million) in fines, costs and fiscal sanctions stemming from a corruption
affair. The group is the subject of a judicial probe into alleged
corruption.
Leisure
Mitchells & Butlers: The Toby Carvery and All Bar One operator has
reported shareholders said to include Joe Lewis, the Bahamas-based
billionaire, and J. P. McManus and John Magnier, the horse racing tycoons,
to the takeover panel over suggestions that they are banding together to
seize control of the company.
Sands: Las Vegas Sands’ Macau operation tumbled 10 per cent in its
first day of Hong Kong trade, after raising $2.5 billion (£1.5 billion) in
an initial public offering to help to restart its gambling projects. The US
casino group had sought to raise more than $3.3 billion by selling shares in
its casino businesses in Macau.
Thomas Cook: The tour operator reported better-than-expected results
for the full year despite the impact of the recession. It said that bookings
for next summer remained on track, with consumers determined to go abroad.
Media
Johnston Press: One of Britain’s three largest local paper groups,
became the first such publisher to charge for online access to some of its
titles, in the latest sign that the industry is attempting to make the
internet pay. Johnston Press is introducing “paywalls” on the websites of
six of its titles.
St Ives: The printing group said that sales in the 13 weeks to October
30 fell 9 per cent on last year as magazine volumes continued to be hit by
advertising declines. Cost reductions mean that the Suffolk-based company is
on track to meet profitability targets announced in full-year results in
October.
Natural
resources
BP: The oil company discovered an oil and gas spill on a pipeline that
serves the giant Prudhoe Bay oilfields in Alaska. The line is one of dozens
serving Prudhoe Bay, the biggest American oilfield complex, where production
usually tops 400,000 barrels per day.
Refineries: Royal Dutch Shell and Essar Oil have extended their
exclusive talks for the Indian company to buy three European refineries as
part of its plan to boost refining capacity to one million barrels a day.
Shell is looking to refocus its downstream operations on America and Asia,
and put the plants in northwest England and Germany on the market.
Retailing
LVMH: France’s luxury goods industry won a new victory in its battle
with eBay when the online auctioneer was fined €1.7 million (£1.55 million)
for breaching an injunction banning the sale of perfumes and beauty products
made by LVMH.
Kindle: Amazon.com’s electronic book reader recorded its best sales yet
in November, as rivals struggle to fulfil their customer orders. The online
retailer said that shoppers were buying several Kindles at once as holiday
gifts, while businesses and organisations were buying the device “in large
quantities” for employees or clients.
Support
services
HDI: The world’s largest membership association for helpdesk and IT
service and support professionals released its annual report, which shows
that fewer support centres are outsourcing services and management foresees
hiring and salary freezes in the industry.
Technology
Monitise: The mobile money specialist has reached agreement with
Travelex, the travel and payments group, to launch mobile services for
Travelex’s 1.75 million global Cash Passport cardholders. The prepaid travel
money card is available in seven currencies.
Astrium: The space systems group, which is a unit of European
Aeronautic Defence & Space, said that SES, the satellite operator, had
ordered four multimission satellites in a deal worth $500 million (£457
million). The new satellites are intended to improve television services in
Europe and boost development in Eastern Europe.
Telecoms
Cable & Wireless: Jim Marsh, chief executive of the company’s
worldwide division, has received 1.5 million performance shares as part of
the company’s Total Shareholder Return scheme.
Samsung: The mobile phone maker said that it expected to beat its 2009
sales target as revenue was boosted by growth in touch-screen models. It had
said that it expected to sell more than 200 million handsets this year.
BT: The telecoms group has dismissed claims that it has increased its
prices for small businesses by 53 per cent over the past 18 months as a
deliberate attempt to “exaggerate the effect of some small price increases
for BT Business customers”.
Nokia: The world’s biggest handset maker plans to install Linux
software on only one smartphone next year damping prospects of a quick
makeover of the Finnish group’s struggling product line-up.
Transport
Aer Lingus: The Irish airline issued a fresh warning to employees that
it would implement an alternative cost-cutting plan if agreement is not
reached over proposed measures. Aer Lingus wants to reduce its annual
operating costs by €97 million (£88.6 million) by shedding almost a fifth of
its staff.
Utilities
Thames Water: David Owens, the chief executive of the water company,
has quit as the company admits that it faces “significant challenges” to
continue investing in its Victorian infrastructure. Ofwat, the regulator,
has told the company that it would not be able to spend as much as it wanted
to over the next five years.
Eurelectric: European carbon prices could soar in the next three years,
pushing up electricity prices with them, unless electricity companies have
greater access to future carbon permits, the European industry body said.
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