Big orders in Asia send shares in engineer Renishaw skyrocketing July 23, 2014 ENGINEERING firm Renishaw saw its share price surge over 20 per cent yesterday, after unveiling record full-year revenue on higher demand from Asia in the fourth quarter. The FTSE 250 company, which generates 90 per cent of its revenue outside the UK, said that “large unpredictable revenue… from certain Far East customers” had offset the [...]
Fresh contracts worth £1.3bn boost Capita’s first-half revenues July 23, 2014 A STREAM of major contract wins, including a £145m deal with Transport for London, helped outsourcing firm Capita’s profit to soar in the first half of the year. The FTSE 100-listed firm said yesterday that it secured £1.3bn in new contracts over the period, including a 10-year £400m agreement to support the management of the [...]
No permit for Sussex shale July 22, 2014 UK ENERGY policy came under attack on two fronts yesterday, after a local council rejected a shale gas drilling application and the government confirmed it would go ahead with its decarbonisation targets. West Sussex County Council refused energy company Celtique’s application to test drill for shale gas or oil near the village of Wisborough Green, [...]
Severstal to sell US steel plants July 21, 2014 RUSSIAN steelmaker Severstal yesterday said it has agreed to sell two US steel plants for $2.325bn (£1.36bn), as it looks to return cash to shareholders and focus on its domestic market. The sale of the Columbus and Dearborn assets – which mainly make steel for the automotive industry – to US rivals Steel Dynamics and [...]
No sale leaves Salamander’s investors cold July 21, 2014 INVESTORS in Salamander Energy were left disappointed yesterday after the Aim-listed oil explorer took itself off the block. The Asia-focused firm was not satisfied with the offers it received and instead chose to sell a 40 per cent stake in the Greater Bualuang oil field in the Gulf of Thailand to Sona Petroeum, in a [...]
Anglo puts South African strike-hit mines on the block July 21, 2014 ANGLO American yesterday confirmed its plans to sell off some of its South African platinum mines, after a five-month strike that slashed production by 40 per cent. The FTSE 100 company is putting its Rustenburg mine on the block, alongside its stake in the Pandora joint venture it owns with peer Lonmin, so that it [...]
Analyst Views: What did you make of Anglo’s announcement? July 21, 2014 BEN DAVIS | LIBERUM I was surprised by the market reaction. These sorts of divestments can take years as there is a dearth of buyers out there with cash. The market will be underwhelmed by the slow pace of the process. I was surprised that Anglo made a $1m loss from Amplats, as it just [...]
RJ Reynolds to appeal ruling to pay out £13.8bn July 21, 2014 RJ REYNOLDS Tobacco Company plans to appeal against a US court order to pay $23.6bn (£13.8bn) to the wife of a smoker who died of lung cancer. The US’s second biggest tobacco company was told that it must pay the fine to Cynthia Robinson from Florida for the death of her husband Michael Johnson, alongside [...]
Reliance profits improve due to oil and gas unit July 21, 2014 INDIAN conglomerate Reliance Industries posted a 13.7 per cent jump in net profit to $1bn (£590m) for the first quarter of the financial year, thanks to an improved performance in its oil and gas exploration division. The company, which is controlled by India’s richest man Mukesh Ambani, said on the weekend that revenue had risen [...]
Energy policy to blame for slump in North Sea drilling July 17, 2014 Changing energy policy is to blame for a dramatic drop in deals and drilling in the UK North Sea, a new report from Deloitte claims today. Seven exploration wells were drilled on the UK Continental Shelf in the second quarter of 2014, significantly lower than the 12 drilled in the previous quarter and the 17 [...]
