News

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

Timms set for Digital Britain role

August 4, 2009

Treasury minister and MP for East Ham, Stephen Timms, is understood to be Labour’s choice to replace Lord Carter as communications minister. Timms, a former e-commerce minister and technology analyst, would be brought in to continue Carter’s work on Digital Britain. Carter plans to return to the private sector.
Supermarket regulation urged

August 4, 2009

The Competition Commission yesterday urged the government to establish an ombudsman to rule on any disputes involving supermarkets and suppliers, following a two year investigation. The new code of practice will regulate every contract between supermarkets with a turnover of more than £1bn and their suppliers. An ombudsman will cost £5m annually, but the British [...]
GSK gets bumper vaccine orders

August 4, 2009

Pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline yesterday announced it has received government contracts for a further 96m doses of its swine flu vaccine. Earlier this year the group said it had government-signed contracts for the vaccine and a $250m (£148m) deal with the US government to provide swine flu products. Analysts have said they expect GSK to reap [...]
JD Sports tackles Canterbury

August 4, 2009

Rugby shirt maker Canterbury has been sold to sportswear retailer JD Sports Fashion in a £6.5m deal, brokered by KPMG. JD sports has bought the key trading assets and global rights to the brand, which sponsors the London Wasps rugby union team.
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS

August 4, 2009

Ernst & YoungErnst & Young is expanding its London and Bermuda business with the promotion of three staff. The insurance practice has admitted Richard Battersby and Jeff Soar as partners and promoted Andy Worth to director. Battersby will become the transactions advisory partner, Soar (pictured) will be providing tax services to Lloyd’s and London market [...]
PENSIONS CRISIS AS DEFICITS SOAR

August 4, 2009

FTSE 100 companies are running a combined pension deficit of £96bn, the largest ever recorded, a leading firm of consulting actuaries will reveal today. The collapse in stock markets means that the shortfall is more than twice the £41bn recorded a year ago, Lane Clark & Peacock’s (LCP) will say. The financial crisis has also [...]
SEC moots a ban of flash trades

August 4, 2009

THE US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is to launch a crackdown on so-called “flash” trades, extremely fast transactions made on electronic trading systems, due to concerns that the practice disadvantages some investors. SEC chairman Mary Schapiro said yesterday that she had told staff to find a way to “eliminate the inequity that results from [...]
Profit boost from Fortis puts BNP chief in buoyant mood

August 4, 2009

BNP PARIBAS posted higher second-quarter profit yesterday thanks in part to its purchase of Fortis assets, and expressed some optimism over prospects for financial markets. Net profit rose 6.6 per cent from a year earlier to €1.6bn (£1.36bn), while gross operating profit rose 44.7 per cent to €4.06bn, beating an average analysts’ forecast of €3.67bn. [...]
Fresh losses at UBS dent hopes of a quick recovery

August 4, 2009

TROUBLED Swiss lender UBS saw its second quarter losses widen by a factor of three yesterday, as its bottom line was dented by charges on its own debt, a loss on the sale of its Brazilian unit and job cuts. The bank fell to a quarterly net loss of Sfr1.4bn (£780m), down from a Sfr395m [...]
Standard Chartered aided by Asian rally

August 4, 2009

STANDARD Chartered yesterday raised $1.7bn (£1.02bn) in a share sale after reporting a 10 per cent jump in pre-tax profits for the first six months of the year. Pre-tax operating profit reached $2.84bn, beating the $2.59bn booked in the first half of 2008 and well ahead of an analysts’ consensus forecast provided by the bank [...]