VW emissions scandal: First UK legal move against Volkswagen as law firm Leigh Day calls for “full refund” over emissions-cheat cars as car giant admits 1.2m British cars affected September 30, 2015 A UK law firm has made what is thought to be the first legal move against Volkswagen in the wake of the emissions cheating scandal, as the car giant admits that almost 1.2m UK cars may have been fitted with the cheat device. Volkswagen said this morning that more than 508,000 VW passenger cars sold [...]
The business case for boardroom diversity: Diverse boards outperform male-only peers by £430bn September 30, 2015 Boardroom diversity boosts business, as diverse boards are outperforming their all-male peers by billions. Listed companies in the UK, US and India with at least one woman on their board beat male-only boards by $430bn in 2014, according to a report from Grant Thornton which measured the difference in returns on assets. Although this isn’t [...]
VW emissions scandal: Volkswagen’s reputation has been driven off cliff September 30, 2015 Volkswagen has had better weeks. As the first major car maker caught up in the diesel emissions scandal, the public’s feelings towards the previously loved German marque have plummeted. YouGov’s Buzz score – measuring whether people have heard positive or negative news about the brand in the past two weeks – has declined over [...]
Revolution Bars report increase in profits after successful IPO September 30, 2015 Revolution Bars yesterday posted an increase in revenues and profits in its first results since floating on the London Stock Exchange. The group reported a 2.9 per cent increase in sales, to £111.8m, and profits before tax of £2.9m at the end of June, up from £2.6m in 2014. Shareholders would be paid their first [...]
RBS mulls buying back shares to cut government stake September 29, 2015 RBS is considering buying back its own shares to help the UK government whittle down its 73 per cent stake more quickly, according to the bank's boss. "I would rather participate as the government is selling down … I think it's probably the best thing for all investors, where excess capital goes back through buy-backs," [...]
Glencore share price slips back while reports suggest it held a secret meeting with investors September 29, 2015 Embattled Glencore reportedly held a secret meeting with an influential investor trade body yesterday, over the commodities miner and trader's £1.6bn share placing earlier this month. A meeting took place between the Investment Association – whose members manage £5.5 trillion of client assets – and John Burton, Glencore's company secretary, according to Sky News. The summit focused [...]
Wolseley share price falls as it cuts outlook for revenue growth September 29, 2015 Shares in Wolseley slumped 10.7 per cent to 3,730p per share after the plumbing and heating group slashed its outlook for revenue growth this morning. Wolseley said it expected to generate like-for-like revenue growth of about four per cent in the six months to January 2016, down from a six-month forecast of six per cent it [...]
Flash sale site MySale reports a £5.2m loss September 29, 2015 MySale, the Australian flash sale website, yesterday said sales during the year to 30 June had increased five per cent to AU$235.9m (£109.2m). Carl Jackson, chief executive of MySale Group, said the loss was due to a “number of tactical issues with the product mix, excessive postage-led promotions and too much marketing budget spent on [...]
End of the world’s biggest ever credit boom means there will be more “Glencores” ahead September 29, 2015 It’s the great unwind show. Admittedly, Glencore’s latest problems may run deeper and look more specific, but together with Vale and Rio, the other great international mining houses plus their suppliers, like America’s Caterpillar, all are suffering the fall-out from the end of the world’s biggest ever credit boom. Oil is testing recent lows and [...]
BHP Billiton: Our earnings will double in the next 15 years, no matter what climate change measures are put in place September 29, 2015 BHP Billiton is optimistic about the future, no matter what climate change prevention strategies governments put in place over the next 15 years. In its climate change portfolio analysis released today, the coal mining company, which is the world's largest by market capitalisation, said it expects its gross earnings to double by 2030 under all [...]