Volkswagen downgraded to BBB+ by Fitch Ratings over emissions test scandal November 9, 2015 Troubled car manufacturer Volkswagen’s credit rating has been downgraded by Fitch Ratings to BBB+, from A. Fitch has also given the car maker a negative outlook. The ratings agency highlighted the recent emissions test scandal, which is now thought to have affected up to 11m of diesel vehicles, as the main driver behind the downgrade. In particular, VW’s corporate [...]
Zurich announces plans for 440 UK job cuts November 9, 2015 Zurich Insurance will cut 440 jobs in the UK as part of plans to simplify its operating structure, it announced today. The company said the UK insurance market had become steadily more challenging, with low investment returns and increasing loss trends creating the headwinds which have accelerated in recent months. Feedback from brokers and customers said a more straightforward business [...]
Finance sector hiring: Demand for compliance workers in the City jumps in October November 9, 2015 It may not have a reputation as the most exciting sector but compliance specialists are increasingly in demand. In figures shown exclusively to City PM, recruitment consultancy Robert Walters revealed compliance vacancies in Canada in October rose 13 per cent compared to September. This figure also represents a 17 per cent increase compared [...]
Merlin Entertainments appoints partner from Asian investment firm as non-executive November 9, 2015 Merlin Entertainments has appointed the partner of a major Asian investment management firm to its board, paving the way for the theme park owner’s expansion in China. The Madame Tussauds and Alton Towers owner said Yun (Rachel) Chiang will join the company as a non-executive director in 2016. Chiang is currently a partner at Pacific [...]
Palamon Capital snaps up majority stake in The Rug Company November 9, 2015 The Rug Company has been rolled up and taken home by private equity firm Palamon Capital Partners, netting its founders millions of pounds. Palamon, which also owns online beauty retailer feelunique.com, said it has bought a majority stake of over 50 per cent from husband and wife team Christopher and Suzanne Sharp and Piper Private Equity, which [...]
Scalpel tower in the City appoints CBRE as leasing agents as search for tenants kicks off November 9, 2015 CBRE has been hired as leasing agents on the Scalpel skyscraper in the City, as the search to find tenants for the 35-storey development in London’s insurance district gets underway. The property advisory firm will partner with Cushman & Wakefield, filling the gap left by the latter’s merger with DTZ, the previous joint agent. The 190m-tall [...]
Barclays appoints Standard Life’s Sir Gerry Grimstone as deputy chairman as Sir Mike Rake steps down November 9, 2015 Barclays has appointed Standard Life chairman Sir Gerry Grimstone to replace the soon-to-depart Sir Mike Rake as its deputy chairman. In a statement today, the bank said Grimstone, who is also on the board of Deloitte and the lead non-exec at the Ministry of Defence, will join at the beginning of January. It's the latest in a [...]
Shipping and oil giant Maersk’s chief executive speaks out about rocky economic outlook November 9, 2015 There are choppy waters ahead for the economy, said Nils Smedegaard Andersen, chief executive at A.P. Moeller-Maersk, who voiced his concerns about the financial outlook this morning. Bloomberg reported that Andersen said Maersk is less than optimistic about global growth. “We conduct a string of our own macro-economic forecasts and we see less growth – particularly in developing nations, [...]
OECD cuts global growth forecast to 2.9 per cent as headwinds from emerging markets “greatly increase” November 9, 2015 The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development has cut its global growth forecast for 2.9 per cent. The Paris-based think tank attributed a "sharp slowdown" in emerging markets, which it called "deeply concerning". "Headwinds [in emerging economies] have generally increased, reflecting weaker commodity prices, tighter credit conditions and lower potential output growth, with the risk [...]
UK house prices: London property prices to rise a third by 2019 as demand continues to outweigh supply November 9, 2015 London house prices will rise by almost a third between this year and 2019, new research has found, as demand in the capital continues to vastly outweigh supply. The CBRE Regional Development Land report forecast nine per cent growth this year, rising to 31 per cent by 2019. In the wider South East, prices will rise six [...]
