Chambers again slashes UK’s growth forecast
PRESSURE for a “Budget for growth” are continuing to mount after one of the UK’s biggest business networks cut its economic forecasts for the second quarter in a row.In a report out today, the British...
View ArticleBrewer toasts Aldi contract
Williams Brothers, the Alloa-based brewery, has signed one of its biggest contracts to date under a deal to extend the range of beers it supplies to discount supermarket chain Aldi.The brewer’s Birds...
View ArticleAviva reshuffles board members
JOHN McFarlane, the Scots-born chairman of Aviva, yesterday continued with his reshuffle of the insurance giant’s board after the departure of two long-serving non-executive directors.Senior...
View ArticlePlant hire specialist Gap Group signs £70m deal
TOOL and plant hire firm Gap Group is predicting another year of rising sales and turnover after securing a £70 million credit line that will allow the company to continue its expansion drive.The...
View ArticleDundee firm Caltech supplies Cloud Atlas film
STAIRLIFT supplier Caltech is celebrating after its devices featured in Hollywood blockbuster Cloud Atlas.The Dundee-based firm was approached in August 2011 and was asked to supply two stairlifts to...
View ArticleMervyn King’s grenade blows up a new debate on RBS
THE future of Royal Bank of Scotland is turning into a right old ding-dong. Less than a week ago, the bank’s chairman and chief executive, Sir Philip Hampton and Stephen Hester respectively, ruffled...
View ArticleBusiness news in brief: Stagecoach | Blackadders | Ship on the Shore | Dignity
TRANSPORT group Stagecoach has recruited its latest non-executive director from fellow Perth-based outfit SSE.Gregor Alexander, who has served as the utility firm’s finance director since 2002, will...
View ArticleDivex duo net multi-million pound deal
Two directors of an Aberdeen-based diving equipment supplier have netted a multi-million pound windfall after selling their firm to marine engineering group James Fisher & Sons for up to £33...
View ArticleCar showrooms expect good March after strong sales
SCOTTISH new car sales continued to accelerate last month, racing ahead of the increase for the UK as a whole and leading industry experts to predict an “excellent” March thanks to the latest 13-plate...
View ArticleBankers talk up loan record
More than 70 per cent of small to medium-sized businesses applying for a loan or overdraft were successful in the last quarter of the year, according to a survey commissioned by the British Bankers’...
View ArticleFlexibility is essential to protect farm payments
With farmers in the less favoured areas of Scotland expected to receive their support payments later this month, NFU Scotland yesterday called for more flexibility in payment to be built into the next...
View ArticleCameron attacks Owen stance
Scottish farming is facing a difficult future if the views of the UK Secretary of State Owen Paterson on the current CAP package prevail, according to John Cameron, the Scottish president of the...
View ArticleAggreko profits spark up 11%
Temporary power generator Aggreko has reported an 11 per cent rise in profits following last year’s “flawless” £60 million contract to supply the London Olympics.The Glasgow-based group also said...
View ArticleStandard Life to share out £302m windfall
EDINBURGH-based insurance giant Standard Life today said its shareholders would get a £302 million windfall as it announced a massive increase in annual profits to £900m.Plans for the windfall, which...
View ArticleLower margins hit IndigoVision profits
CCTV systems maker IndigoVision has reported a 26.6 per cent drop in first-half profits as lower margins offset a rise in sales.The Edinburgh-based firm posted a pre-tax profit of £952,000 for the six...
View ArticleScottish Business Briefing - Thursday 7 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. BANKINGMervyn King suggest RBS split to end...
View ArticleAviva shares slide after dividend cut
Shares in Aviva tumbled this morning after the insurance group slashed its dividend by more than a quarter in a bid to trim its debt pile.The firm proposed giving shareholders a final dividend of 9p a...
View ArticleBoE keeps rates on hold
The Bank of England has held interest rates at their record low of 0.5 per cent and kept the size of its quantitative easing (QE) programme unchanged at £375 billion.Howard Archer, chief UK and...
View ArticleMarkets ignore central bank caution
The failure of either the European or UK central banks to offer new stimulus was not enough to stall the Footsie’s rally yesterday as traders concentrated on evidence of a gradually recovering global...
View ArticleInvestor consortium in £1bn bid for RBS branches
ROYAL Bank of Scotland is understood to have received a £1 billion bid from a consortium of institutional investors for more than 300 branches.The state-backed lender is being forced to sell the...
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