News

Your daily news update straight from the City PM newsroom in London

Waitrose benefits as shoppers return to high-end supermarkets

September 15, 2009

UK FOOD shoppers are regaining confidence and returning to upmarket grocery chain Waitrose, according to the latest figures. TNS Worldpanel said yesterday that sales at Waitrose were up 11.2 per cent in the 12 weeks to 6 September, outperforming the supermarket sector, which grew by 5.5 per cent. Waitrose also grew its market share to [...]
Talks between BA and Iberia take off after summer break

September 15, 2009

BRITISH AIRWAYS’ (BA) chief financial officer Keith Wiliams said yesterday that talks with Spanish flag carrier Iberia had stepped up a gear, over a year after a possible tie-up was first announced. In a weekly newsletter, Williams told staff : “We have met the Iberia management team on a few occasions now and the talks [...]
Ex KPMG exec jailed for fraud

September 15, 2009

A FORMER KPMG finance director who stole over £500,000 to fund his wife’s lavish lifestyle was yesterday sentenced to four years in jail. Andrew Wetherall, 49, started to abuse the global accountancy firm’s expenses scheme in 2002 after his wife’s previous partner reduced maintenance payments. Wetherall claims he was driven to crime by fears his [...]
EC could block Dutch state’s loan guarantee agreement with ING

September 15, 2009

THEEUROPEAN Commission (EC) has prolonged its review of a €22bn (£19.5bn) loan portfolio guarantee between ING and the Dutch state, saying the government may have paid too much. ING and the Dutch state struck a deal in January, under which the government agreed to guarantee 80 per cent of a €27.7bn portfolio of so-called Alt-A [...]
C4 BOSS EVICTED

September 15, 2009

Channel 4 is expected to confirm today that its chief executive, Andy Duncan, will step down, ending months of speculation. Industry sources said that the announcement has been delayed while Duncan negotiated his pay-off, but is expected this morning. Duncan had been under fire for failing to secure the state-owned broadcaster’s future funding, which will [...]
EC sees Euro area growing

September 14, 2009

THE Eurozone is coming out of recession thanks to monetary and fiscal stimuli, the European Commission (EC) said yesterday in its interim forecast. But its outlook for the rest of the year remained gloomy as unemployment reached a 10-year high and industrial production disappointed. The EC still expects GDP in the Eurozone to contract by [...]
Lack of supply lifts house prices as mortgage lending increases

September 14, 2009

HOUSE prices rose in August for the first time in two years, new data from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)showed yesterday, providing further evidence that activity in the housing market is improving. The seasonally-adjusted net balance of surveyors reporting rising rather than falling prices over the quarter to August turned positive with a [...]
Moody’s sees more pain for British banks

September 14, 2009

BRITAIN’S banking crisis is far from over, credit ratings agency Moody’s said yesterday, with adverse macroeconomic conditions likely to weigh on their profitability for months to come. In its new UK Banking System Outlook, Moody’s signalled continuing pain for beleaguered British lenders, due to the likelihood that unemployment will rise, forcing struggling borrowers to default [...]
Kentz set to bid for more LNG work at Gorgon

September 14, 2009

KENTZ, the Irish oil and gas group, said yesterday it would bid for more contracts at the Gorgon liquefied natural gas (LNG) mining project, and saw its first-half profits rise 10 per cent. Chief executive Hugh O’Donnell said the firm would put up between $400m (£241m) and $500m for the contracts at Gorgon, a project [...]
WHAT IS THE OUTLOOK FOR KENTZ?

September 14, 2009

KEITH MORRIS EVOLUTIONKentz’s focus on engineering and construction in growth areas continues to impress. Improving margins on flat revenue, a 38 per cent increase in the backlog this year and larger cash reserves all point to strong profits growth underpinned by good visibility.MALCOLM GRAHAM-WOOD HANSONWESTHOUSEKentz delivered the goods in the first half and with a [...]