GLORY DAYS FOR ROYAL ASCOT CITY RACING SET June 16, 2009 IT WAS smiles all round for the property world’s keenest racegoers yesterday, as a group of City real estate heavyweights toasted a win (and a hefty £167,472 prize pot) for their horse Paco Boy in the Queen Anne Stakes at Ascot. I hear Parkwood Property Investments partner Derek Lucie-Smith, one of the owners, was in [...]
Huge demand for gilts sale led by banks June 16, 2009 THE DEBT Management Office (DMO) raised a greater-than-expected £7bn in a syndicated sale of 25-year gilts yesterday, easing fears of a lack of investor enthusiasm for British government debt. The DMO took orders for £15.25bn worth of gilts, making the sale by far the most popular syndicated sale of sovereign debt in history. Yields on [...]
BA turbulence as staff asked to work for free June 16, 2009 THERE was further turbulence at British Airways (BA) yesterday after the airline asked its 40,000-strong staff to work without pay, as the company “fights for survival”. The flag carrier is desperately seeking to cut costs, having made record losses of £401m for 2008. Airlines across the globe are struggling as they deal with a slump [...]
If you want a good quality of life, Helsinki’s your city June 16, 2009 YESZOE STRIMPEL THAT London hasn’t made it into the top 50 places to live in the Economist Intelligence Unit’s liveability survey doesn’t surprise me. These types of lists are compiled using utterly colourless criteria that bear little relation to what makes life worth living. Admittedly, Helsinki, Vienna and Zurich (all in the top 10) are [...]
Ascot snub has me worrying about my job June 16, 2009 DEAR VEXED: It used to be that my bank sent everyone on corporate entertainment trips. I’ve never missed Ascot – until now, that is. What with the cut backs and so forth, I’m not going this year. Should I be worried the company is about to expire? Or should I be worried I’m about to [...]
Land Secs director walks out on firm June 16, 2009 BRITAIN’S largest property firm Land Securities yesterday said that its managing director Mike Hussey will leave the firm at the end of this month after rumours of boardroom tensions. The firm last year abandoned a plan to split into three companies, one specialising in London property, one in shops and the other in outsourcing. Hussey, who [...]
GM sells Saab to a Swedish supercar firm June 16, 2009 TROUBLED carmaker General Motors (GM) said yesterday it had reached a tentative agreement to sell its loss-making Saab division to Swedish supercar manufacturer Koenigsegg. The deal will be part-funded by the European Investment Bank (EIB), which is supplying a $600m (£367m) loan, guaranteed by the Swedish government. “Closing this deal represents the best chance for Saab [...]
US house starts in healthy rise June 16, 2009 US HOUSEBUILDERS were heartened yesterday as a Commerce Department report showed new builds rose 17.2 per cent in May, the biggest gain in three months. Homes built for single families rose 7.5 per cent – the largest gain since January 2006. But a report from central bank the Federal Reserve said US industrial production slid [...]
MySpace to axe 400 in cost cut June 16, 2009 MYSPACE, the social network owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, yesterday unveiled plans to axe 30 per cent of its staff to lower costs as it struggles to stay popular in the face of rising competition. MySpace will be left with about 1,000 employees, the group said, suggesting around 400 staff will lose their jobs. [...]
Headline UK inflation still above target June 16, 2009 BRITISH headline inflation fell by much less than had been expected in May, raising speculation that the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) may decide not to extend its quantitative easing programme beyond the current £125bn. Official data yesterday showed that consumer prices rose 0.6 per cent last month, taking the annual rate of [...]
