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Thursday's company news

Created:
8 May 2008
Written by:
Tanya Malick

• Carphone Warehouse is to sell a 50% stake in its retail business for £1.1bn to US consumer electronics retailer Best Buy and the two groups will form a new company. (IC COMMENT)

• Commercial broadcaster ITV has been whacked with a huge £5.68m fine for misleading callers to its premium rate phone-in competitions. (IC COMMENT)

• Morgan Stanley has lowered its recommendation on Enterprise Inns to 'equal-weight' from 'overweight' following the surge in the pub group's share price as it moved closer to REIT status yesterday. (IC COMMENT)

• The Takeover Panel has set a deadline for bidding rivals Infinis and 3i Infrastructure to reveal whether they intend to bid for Novera Energy. (IC COMMENT)

• Oil explorer Sibir Energy said total production in the first quarter rose 50% to a record 5.9m barrels compared to the same period last year. (IC COMMENT )

• Engineer Renishaw expects pre-tax profit in the year to 30 June to exceed its previous high of £38.1m, achieved in 2006, partly aided by the positive impact of currency exchange rate movements. (IC COMMENT)

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• Chilean miner Antofagasta has reached a settlement with local farmers regarding the el Mauro tailings dam at its Los Pelambres mine.

• There have been more gains for TT electronics today as the sensor and electronic components firm bagged a contract with the US armed forces worth $90m over the next five years.

• Ferrochrome producer Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation was back on the acquisition trail today, after buying a 50% stake in a Chinese ferroalloys producer.

• Insurer Royal & Sun Alliance reported a 15% rise in net written premiums to £1.721bn in the first quarter and said it remains confident of achieving a strong result in 2008 and beyond.

• Newspaper publisher Trinity Mirror said the advertising environment remains difficult and volatile as it posts a 3.1% decline in advertising.

• Business software giant Sage reported first-half growth that was in-line with management expectations except for the troublesome Sage Healthcare Division in North America.

• Household goods giant Unilever posted a 7.2% rise in first quarter underlying sales, ahead of forecasts.

• South African insurer Old Mutual saw funds under management slide in its first quarter as challenging market conditions took their toll.

• Sales at high street fashion chain Next fell by 3.9% to £738.9m in the first quarter, with the group cautious about the outlook given the soaring cost of food, fuel, mortgages and taxes.

• Surging platinum prices helped Lonmin report a strong rise in half-year pre-tax profit.

• Spirits group Diageo said trading in the third quarter continued the trend seen in the first half of the group's financial year.

• Builders merchants and DIY group Grafton Group said it is well placed to cope with more challenging markets as it faces a downturn in the residential construction market and slowdown in the international economy.

• Investment bank Close Brothers has kept its outlook broadly the same as it was at the end of the first half, with uncertain market conditions set to affect the securities and corporate finance divisions.

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PRESS SUMMARY:

Microsoft is believed to have approached Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, over a possible acquisition of the social networking site, according to the Times.

The Government is struggling to find an independent valuer for Northern Rock to determine what, if any, compensation shareholders should receive for their stakes in the nationalised bank, says the Independent.

Jean-Pierre Garnier, the chief executive of the world's fourth biggest pharmaceutical group, GlaxoSmithKline, offered respite to the beleaguered Government yesterday, saying that his company does not intend to join the exodus of those leaving the UK for lighter taxes in Ireland, reports the Independent.

BAE Systems and VT Group have renewed the terms on which they will form a shipbuilding joint venture amid signs that the Government is close to placing a long-delayed £3.9bn order for two new aircraft carriers, writes the Telegraph.

The turmoil in the housing market continued to bite yesterday as the mortgage broker John Charcol admitted it would have to call on its founders for cash while its trade body complained to the City watchdog that banks were unfairly excluding brokers from the best home loan deals, according to the Independent.

Property entrepreneur Robert Tchenguiz has increased his stake in pub group Mitchells and Butlers. He bought another 3pc of M&B yesterday from Icelandic investment bank Kaupthing to take his holding up to 26pc, says the Telegraph.

Millions of current account customers face an increase of up to 20 per cent in monthly fees as banks seek to boost revenues before a ruling by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) that could cap overdraft charges, writes the Times.

BP has won its largest ever tax rebate in Russia, worth almost 10bn roubles (£215m), after overpaying on its taxes two years ago, reports the Independent.

GLG Partners, the London-based hedge fund reeling from the departure of Greg Coffey, is expecting to lose more than $4 billion (£2.05 billion) in investment assets as disillusioned investors follow the star Australian fund manager out of the door, according to the Times.

The Government is on course for an embarrassing showdown with the European Union, business groups and environmental charities after refusing to guarantee that billions of pounds of revenue it stands to earn from carbon-permit trading will be spent on combating climate change, says the Independent.

The head of the Financial Services Authority criticised building societies yesterday for slack management and told them to overhaul their systems and governance if they are to withstand shocks from the credit crunch, writes the Independent.

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