IMPERIAL TOBACCO CHIEF DOUBTS HEALTH PROPOSALS WOULD REDUCE SALES
Gareth Davis, chief executive of Imperial Tobacco, has said proposals to change the way cigarettes and cigars are sold in Britain would not affect sales of his company's brands. Suggestions are being put forward by the Department of Health, which include packaging cigarettes in plain boxes and stopping packets of 10 cigarettes being sold. However, Davis said: 'We need to concentrate on making sure that existing legislation, such as the change in the age you can buy cigarettes from 16 to 18, is properly enforced.'
ORIGIN IGNORES BG'S ADVANCES AND TURNS TO AMERICAN GIANT
BG Group was considering leaving its 6.2 billion pound hostile bid for Origin Energy after the Australian company bolstered its defences against a takeover. Origin announced it would form a joint venture with American oil group ConocoPhillips to build a LNG plant and develop its coal-bed methane assets in Queensland. Citigroup analyst David Thomas said: 'We believe it will be difficult for BG to match the Conoco deal.'
METALRAX ANNOUNCES PRE-TAX LOSS
Metalrax announced a wider first-half pre-tax loss because of goodwill impairment and exceptional items. The supplier of engineering and consumer durable products said it expects current year results to be broadly in line with market expectations. The company revealed that for its half year to June 30 it had a 5.3 million pound pre-tax loss. The amount is compared to a 436,000 pound loss a year earlier.
The Daily Telegraph
TRINITY TO CLOSE SEVEN NEWSPAPERS
Trinity Mirror, the UK's biggest regional newspaper publisher, will put 30 jobs at risk as it plans to close seven local papers and nine satellite offices in North Wales and the Northwest. Trinity Mirror said this summer that advertising revenues were falling faster than at any time in the past two decades. The publisher also promised to find 20 million pounds of new cost savings by next year. Sara Wilde, Trinity Mirror Northwest regional managing director, said: 'I believe these changes will strengthen the power of our products in their marketplaces and meet both the needs of advertisers and readers in the face of challenging market conditions.'
GLG PARTNERS RECRUITS TWO SENIOR MERRILL LYNCH FUND MANAGERS
GLG Partners has hired two fund managers from Merrill Lynch, the investment bank, to run its technology and energy portfolios. Anthony Burton, who ran a global long/short fund at Merrill, will now manage the London-based hedge fund firm's global technology portfolios with Philip Pearson. The focus will be widened to include the global media and telecom sectors.
ALLEN & OVERY'S 100 MILLION POUND GLOBAL INVESTMENT STARTS TO PAY
Allen & Overy, the law firm, has said a 100 million pound investment in its international network has begun paying dividends. The announcement comes as the globalisation of legal services continues to gather pace. The firm reported a 13 percent increase in profits for the year to the end of April. David Morley, a senior partner, said globalisation had served as the driving force behind its performance. He said the investment had seen it establish the presence of more than 25 lawyers in 18 of the 21 countries in which it operates.
The Independent
FLYBE BREAKS INTO PROFIT AFTER BA DEAL
Flybe, the regional airline, has been helped by the purchase of BA Connect from British Airways to post annual profits of 34.9 million pounds. The amount compares with losses of 16.2 million pounds the previous year. Flybe revealed its fuel-efficient planes had helped it to counter the effects of rocketing fuel prices. It also said a balance between business and leisure customers had protected it from the economic slowdown.
GW BUOYED BY SATIVEX TRIAL RESULTS
Trials of GW Pharmaceuticals' Sativex, the cannabis-based painkiller, have revealed it has long-term efficacy in the treatment of pain from multiple sclerosis. GW's chances of gaining approval for the drug as a treatment for other problems associated with MS could be improved by the results of the trials.
SHRIGLEY STEPS DOWN FROM WOLFSON
The chief executive of Wolfson Microelectronics, Dave Shrigley, is to step down from his position. The Scottish audio chip maker announced Shrigley would leave at the end of the year 'for personal family reasons'. It is understood the American is keen to return to the United States, and Mike Hickey, a Motorola senior executive, is set to replace him.
The Guardian
NO PAYOUTS AS NATIONWIDE SWALLOWS RIVALS
Nationwide building society is set to take over Cheshire and Derbyshire, its smaller rivals, to prop up the mutual sector. However, its chief executive Graham Beale said on Monday it is not prepared to become the backstop for ailing societies. The biggest building society in the country also said there would be no payouts to members of Cheshire and Derbyshire because they were running up losses in the credit crunch.
BARGAIN HUNTERS HELP PRIMARK TO BUCK SALES TREND
In the latest sign that lower-cost retailers are benefiting from rising prices and the credit crunch, budget clothing chain Primark has returned to growth in the past three months. In a trading update on Monday, owner Associated British Foods forecast that like-for-like trading would rise by two percent in the second half of the year. John Bason, finance director, said: 'The value-clothing proposition is changing the way that people shop on the high street.'
FLYBE CUTS PLANS FOR GROWTH AFTER FALL IN BUSINESS PASSENGERS
Flybe, the Exeter-based carrier, will cut growth plans this winter as the economic downturn squeezes demand for flights. Jim French, the airline's chairman and chief executive, said: 'We are beginning to see that some of the corporate accounts are slowing down.' After a decision to slash growth in capacity, Flybe is flying 400,000 fewer seats than it expected to between October and March.
Prepared for Reuters by Durrants
Keywords: PRESS DIGEST British business Sept 9
tf.TFN-Europe_newsdesk@thomson.com ak COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2008. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Thomson Financial News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Financial News.
© 2008 AFX News
