HSBC’s £13.7bn profits disappoint
Banking giant HSBC disappointed the City this morning with a 6 per cent drop in full-year profits to $20.6 billion (£13.7bn).Europe’s biggest bank took a $5.2bn write-down on the value of its debt, but...
View ArticleSnow chills Debenhams profits hopes
Department store chain Debenhams has warned that profits will miss expectations after January’s snowstorms blew a hole in sales figures.Underlying revenues were 10 per cent lower in the affected period...
View ArticleEric Daniels joins CVC Capital Partners
Former Lloyds Banking Group chief executive Eric Daniels has joined private equity firm CVC Capital Partners as a member of its global financial institutions advisory board, it was announced...
View Article18 jobs at risk as Voith Hydro plan Inverness cut
ENERGY Firm Voith Hydro has announced plans to axe its operations based in Inverness where 18 people are employed.The company, in a statement released this morning, said: “Voith Hydro is planning to...
View ArticleFTSE 100 dragged lower by miners
MINING stocks dragged the Footsie down yesterday following analysts’ notes on sector giants Anglo American and Kazakhmys and the Chinese government’s tightening of mortgage lending rules.Nomura slashed...
View ArticleBusiness in brief: SSE | Premier Hytemp | Thomas Cook
Ian Marchant, who is stepping down as chief executive of Scottish Hydro owner SSE in July, has sold more than £220,000 worth of shares.Marchant and his wife sold a total of 15,562 shares at 1,463p...
View ArticleSmall businesses slam banks as lending falls
Small businesses rounded on Scotland’s big banks yesterday as it was revealed that lending had nose-dived in the final three months of 2012.Bank of England (BoE) policymakers came under intense...
View ArticleHunter’s Sigma Capital in joint building venture
SHARES in Sigma Capital, the Aim-quoted investment vehicle in which Sir Tom Hunter holds a 22 per cent stake, jumped 18 per cent after the Edinburgh-based property firm signed a deal to build houses in...
View ArticleCall for £5.5m to spend on lamb promotion
Much more needs to be spent on the promotion of Scotch lamb to boost home consumption and exports, according to Fife farmer George Milne, development officer with the National Sheep Association in...
View ArticleComment: Lending will force Bank to find new ideas
Earlier indications that the Bank of England’s Funding for Lending scheme (FLS) was easing the loans log-jam appear to have been overstated. Lending from some of the main banks fell in the final three...
View ArticleCommercial property sales in £5bn slump
ANNUAL commercial property sales in Scotland have fallen by more that £5 billion since the height of the market in 2007, new analysis shows. The 80 per cent drop has compelled the Scottish Property...
View ArticleShort-term view holding back UK growth
PRESSURE to deliver quick results is damaging UK business and holding back growth, according to a report published today. The report, carried out by the former director general of the Institute of...
View ArticleFirms warned of ‘shareholder spring II’
PENSION funds have warned the UK’s biggest company bosses to expect another shareholder spring unless they clamp down on “unjustified” executive pay.The National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF),...
View ArticleLochhead’s CAP challenge
Richard LOCHHEAD, Scotland’s cabinet secretary for rural affairs, has been challenged to spell out Scottish Government thinking on the implementation of reforms of the Common Agricultural Policy.MEP...
View ArticleOnline growth drives Paddy Power profits
Bookmaker Paddy Power today said its online betting operations were going from “strength to strength” as it reported a 15 per cent rise in full-year profits.The Dublin-based company has 217 shops in...
View ArticleScottish Business Briefing - Tuesday 5 March, 2013
WELCOME to scotsman.com’s Scottish Business Briefing. Every morning we bring you a comprehensive round-up of all news affecting business in Scotland today. BANKINGSmall businesses slam banks as lending...
View ArticleUK broadband ‘among Europe’s best’ says Ofcom report
Broadband services in the UK are among the best in Europe, with enthusiastic consumers benefiting from some of the lowest prices, according to an Ofcom report.The regulator’s “broadband scorecard”...
View ArticleFTSE and Dow charge to new highs
The FTSE 100 surged to its highest level since the collapse of Lehman Brothers yesterday as gains inspired by encouraging home news turned into a feeding frenzy once New York’s Dow Jones opened at...
View ArticleCupid eyes ‘social’ sites as profits leap by third
Dating website operator Cupid is confident of delivering another year of “healthy” growth after announcing a 31 per cent jump in annual profits.The Edinburgh-based firm, which owns sites such as Be...
View ArticleKeiller wants cohesion as Wood unveils profit hike
Wood Group chief executive Bob Keiller outlined his plans for a more “joined up” company yesterday as he reported a 35 per cent jump in profits in his first annual results at the helm of the energy...
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