News

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

BEST OF THE BROKERS

July 14, 2009

UNILEVERJP Morgan said that Unilever is on a path to growth and a higher valuation as it upgraded the stock to “overweight”. The broker said that, despite outperforming most peers in the year-to-date, Unilever still trades at discounts of nine per cent and 13 per cent to peers in foods and households and personal care [...]
City workers favour small banks

July 14, 2009

Two thirds of financial services professionals believe that any bank considered “too big to fail” should be forced to shrink, according to research released today. The Securities & Investment Institute (SII) found that 67 per cent of respondents thought banks’ size should be curbed, to combat moral hazard. The findings back up Bank of England [...]
Leisure & Gaming poor results

July 14, 2009

Leisure & Gaming yesterday reported a “disappointing” set of second quarter results. The online sports betting firm saw a sharp fall in its net win percentage in three months to June with no large football tournaments taking place. Amounts wagered rose to ¤38.5m , boosted by poker tournament fees, earning net win of ¤5.2m (2008: [...]
Burger King scraps $1 burger

July 14, 2009

Fast food chain Burger King yesterday scrapped plans to sell its double cheeseburger for $1 (60p) in the US after franchisees voted down the proposal for a second time. Burger King has been trying to win more diners on value points from arch-rival McDonalds, but franchisees shot down the plan after concerns it will hit [...]
GOLDMINE $ACHS

July 14, 2009

STAFF at Goldman Sachs are in line for an average pay packet of $1m (£612,000) each this year, after the bank reported second quarter net income that smashed expectations. The Wall Street giant booked a profit of $3.44bn, or $4.93 per share, for the three months to 26 June, up 64 per cent from $2.1bn, [...]
business to suffer as posties vote to walk out this friday

July 14, 2009

THOUSANDS of postal workers are set to strike on Friday, bringing chaos to businesses across London, as a row over jobs, pay and modernisation at Royal Mail intensifies. Over 12,000 members will stage a 24-hour walk-out on Friday, the Communication Workers’ Union (CWU) said yesterday, accusing Royal Mail of cutting wages and jobs without discussing [...]
Intel’s results boost sector

July 14, 2009

INTEL, the world’s biggest chipmaker, reported better-than-expected second quarter net profits of $1bn (£610m) yesterday, fuelling hopes that the worst is behind the technology sector, as its reporting season opens. The company said its revenues of $8bn were down 15 per cent year-on-year, but up 12 per cent from the first quarter, and beat analysts [...]
Why Goldman Sachs is doing so well

July 14, 2009

SO Meredith Whitney was right. The high-profile Wall Street analyst upgraded her advice to potential Goldman Sachs investors from “neutral” to a “buy” – and the investment bank, whose European operations are based in Fleet Street, responded with a hugely positive set of numbers. Net profit for the three months to June hit $3.4bn from [...]
Oil saves US retail figures

July 14, 2009

CAR and petrol sales salvaged an otherwise lacklustre June for US retailers, data out yesterday revealed. The report from the US Commerce Department showed sales at retailers rose 0.6 per cent from a month earlier, beating economists’ expectations of a 0.4 per cent advance. But outside of car showrooms and petrol stations, the sales results [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING

July 14, 2009

FINANCIAL TIMES FIRSTGREATWESTERN BACK ON TRACKA rail franchise that became notorious for large numbers of train cancellations and poor punctuality has shown sufficient improvement to be released from an intensive monitoring regime imposed by the Department for Transport. Lord Adonis, transport secretary, yesterday told the House of Lords that FirstGreatWestern had met the standards required [...]