Cash-rich firms handing record dividends to shareholders
Investors in UK companies received “unprecedented” dividends in the third quarter as cash-rich companies handed back funds sitting unused on their balance sheets, a new report has found.Total payouts...
View ArticleBill Jamieson: Mini marvels are the place to put your cash
FALLING inflation, reductions in unemployment at the UK level, rising household incomes, a pick-up in retail sales, even an improvement in the public finances – if the economy has now crawled out of...
View ArticleAlbion aims to raise £15m through top-up scheme for VCT investment
A VENTURE capital investment firm that holds stakes in a medical technology outfit in Edinburgh and a renewable energy plant in Perth has launched a “top-up” scheme to raise £15 million.London-based...
View ArticlePrivate equity firms eye nuclear fuel maker Urenco
SOME of the biggest names in private equity are thought to be circling nuclear fuel maker Urenco, in a move that could spark political repercussions.Chancellor George Osborne has hired investment bank...
View ArticleTaxi maker Manganese Bronze turns to Chinese investor for £15m rescue
MANGANESE Bronze, the maker of London’s iconic black taxis, is understood to be in talks with Chinese shareholder Geely to throw the British engineer a £15 million financial life line.Geely, which took...
View ArticleHolyrood urged not to copy Westminster business rates plan
FEARS have been raised that Scottish firms could face a “disastrous” delay in expected rates revaluations after the UK government postponed its business property taxes review until 2017. Peter Muir,...
View ArticleThe week ahead: Consumer-facing stocks dominating City’s diary
INVESTORS will get a taste of current consumer spending levels this week when the owners of brands including Argos, Costa and Mr Kipling all report on recent trading.Home Retail Group has cheered...
View ArticleNationwide tipped to enter battle for RBS’s branches
Nationwide Building Society is considering making a bid for the 316 branches that Royal Bank of Scotland was due to sell to Santander, it was reported yesterday.The mutual is looking at an offer as...
View ArticleBusiness news in brief: Lending study aids creation of bank
LLOYDS Banking Group has put together a report on lending to mid-sized companies that is set to play a key role in the development of a UK government business bank.The lender is understood to have been...
View ArticleBP ‘seals deal to take 20% stake in Roseneft’
OIl giant BP has agreed a deal worth more than $27 billion (£17bn) that will see it take a stake in the world’s largest publicly-listed oil producer, it was reported yesterday.It is understood that the...
View ArticleScottish Business Briefing - Monday 22 October, 2012
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. ECONOMICSScottish firms hold better credit...
View ArticleRising costs dent Devro’s profit expectations
Shares in sausage skin-maker Devro fell this morning after it said rising raw material costs and adverse currency movements would eat into this years profits. The Moodiesburn-based firm said that...
View ArticleIrn-Bru to sponsor Glasgow’s Commonwealth Games
The company behind Irn-Bru has been unveiled as the latest sponsor of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.Soft drinks firm AG Barr, whose links with Glasgow date back more than 100 years,has been named...
View ArticleMarkets: Aggreko still misses that vital spark
TEMPORARY power provider Aggreko was the biggest blue chip faller for the second session on Monday as brokers cut their price targets on the shares.The Glasgow-based firm was 3 per cent lower at 2,073p...
View ArticleBP nets £17bn in Rosneft deal
THE creation of the world’s largest publicly quoted oil producer moved a step closer on Monday after BP confirmed its long-awaited deal to sell its 50 per cent stake in TNK-BP.The agreement with...
View ArticleBonuses may be a thing of the past for Lloyds bosses
Lloyds Banking Group is mulling a shake-up of pay that could see it ditch annual bonuses for senior staff and extend the term of incentives to up to ten years.The bank is said to have raised the...
View ArticleBlack cab firm slides into administration
THE lossmaking manufacturer of Britain’s iconic black taxi slipped into administrative receivership after it failed to win a financial lifeline from one of its biggest shareholders.Manganese Bronze...
View ArticleComment: From Russia with love, and a healthy profit
BOB Dudley has been looking for some good news ever since he took over the reins at BP in the wake of the disastrous Gulf of Mexico spill. Yesterday he got some.State-owned Russian giant Rosneft’s...
View ArticleShell oil and gas field biggest in Scottish North Sea for ten years
OIL giant Shell has announced one of its biggest Scottish North Sea energy projects in the past decade which will pump 5 per cent of Britain’s gas needs at peak production.The British/Dutch company...
View ArticleBank begins top jobs shake-up as Jones quits
The Bank of England has begun the search for a chief operating officer as it moves to take on new powers and shake up the role performed by its governor.The central bank said yesterday that the...
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