BANKING & INSURANCEHBoS rights issue approvedShareholders have approved the HBoS rights issue despite the Edinburgh banking giant's chairman admitting its share-price performance has been 'horrible'. All three vo
tes on the £4 billion share offer received yes votes in excess of 98 per cent despite shares falling 5.5 per cent to 276p – a shade over the discounted 275p rights issue price. During the meeting chairman Lord Dennis Stevenson responded to a question as to whether the bank's board had sufficient banking experience to see the group through the troubled economic climate. He commented: "If you look at our executive board, all but two of them have been commercial bankers. There is a lot of talk about the chief executive being a retailer; he had five years in retailing, ten years as a banker. It is not exactly unexperienced." However, he added: "I did not say everything was fine. Our share price is not fine at all. It is horrible."
(The Scotsman) Read all today's banking news from scotsman.comECONOMYSlowdown signs build upData from the Office of National Statistics has further reinforced the gloom surrounding the UK economy, revealing that UK business investment has fallen more than was expected in the first quarter of the year. The ONS data shows business investment falling by a seasonally adjusted 1.8 per cent, despite the estimate predicting a 1.4 per cent fall. The fall is being regarded as yet another piece in the jigsaw which will encourage the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee to hold the interest base rate at five per cent rather than institute the further cut many are crying out for. Chief UK economist at Global Insight, Howard Archer commented: "The factors supporting business investment through 2006 and 2007 are now waning markedly, and this is being compounded by markedly tighter credit conditions. Specifically, business investment was supported by extended final demand through 2006 and most of 2007, generally high business confidence, increased capacity pressures in a number of sectors, strong corporate balance sheets and elevated profitability. In addition, tighter credit conditions only had a very limited impact on investment late on in 2007." He added: "Business investment seems set to be markedly weaker in 2008 in the face of tight lending conditions, markedly softer final demand, weakening profitability and sharply lower business confidence, reflecting heightened concerns and uncertainties over the economic outlook. In addition, the serious downturns in the commercial property sector and the housing market seem certain to weigh down heavily on construction investment."
(The Herald) Read all today's economics news from scotsman.comENERGY & UTILITIESKing warns on oil priceBank of England governor Mervyn King has warned MPs that the soaring oil price represents the biggest threat to efforts to keep inflation under control. The governor told the Treasury select committee that if inflation is stripped out oil prices are now as high as they were in the 1970s. The comments come as the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee battles to drag soaring inflation back to the government's two per cent target. However, Opec president Chakib Khelil has predicted the price may rise as high as $170 per barrel over the summer.
(The Scotsman) Read all today's energy and utilities news from scotsman.comFOOD, DRINK & AGRICULTUREJackson to join Wm GrantLesley Jackson is set to leave India and return to Scotland to join family-owned whisky distiller Wm Grant & Sons. Jackson will join Grants as finance director to replace Alex Short who has left to succeed Iain Greenock at IrnBru makers AG Barr. The newly appointed Jackson was most recently chief finance officer of United Breweries Limited, the Indian beer company headed by entrepreneur Vijay Mallya. Chief executive of Wm Grant & Sons Roland van Bommel welcomed the appointment: "With her wealth of experience and proven track record in dynamic international finance roles, Lesley will be a valuable addition to our executive team. As we continue to develop the business through the organic growth of our core brands and focus on creating new revenue streams through new brands and acquisition, Lesley will play a key role in driving our strategy to ensure continued growth as an independent family-owned company."
(The Herald) Read all today's food, drink and agriculture news from scotsman.comMANAGEMENTMaco creates Glasgow accountancy giantMartin Aitken & Co, the Glasgow accountancy practice, has acquired rivals AS Fisher & Co in a deal which sees the formation of the city's largest accountancy group. The deal will see the creation of an eight-partner business which is set to position itself as the dominant force in Glasgow. Maco senior partner Graham Tough commented on the deal: "There was a financial aspect to the deal, but we'd rather not disclose the details. In the interests of goodwill, we're billing this as a merger." Maco's client base is expected to increase by 25 per cent following the deal and staff numbers will now hit more than 70. Tough added: "The mid-tier is where the action is in Scottish accountancy today as we adapt to the needs of the modern marketplace and offer small to medium-sized businesses a real alternative to the bigger firms. This is our fourth merger in 14 years and is part of our strategy of steady, disciplined, careful growth."
(The Herald) Read all today's management news from scotsman.comTECHNOLOGYWolfson founder takes Elonics stakeThe founder of Wolfson Microelectronics has taken a stake in Scottish semi-conductor firm Elonics. David Milne is part of a group of investors to have pumped $1 million into the fledgling Livingston firm which was founded in 2003. Elonics has designed a silicon radio frequency tuner which can be used to convert signals into sounds and pictures and is being targeted at the portable television and mobile phone market. Milne commented: "The world is going mobile and Elonics is very well positioned to take advantage of this trend." Elonics vice president of marketing, Julian Hayes added: "We're in the consumer market, where there's no such thing as low volumes. The customers we talk to are producing things in hundreds of thousands if not millions. Clearly our expectation is this is a high-volume product but only time will tell. The true test is a customer asking for that product to be shipped."
(The Scotsman) Read all today's technology news from scotsman.comPROPERTYCouncil backs Bo'ness housing planA scheme that will see hundreds of new homes built in Bo'ness as part of a plan to regenerate the town's waterfront has been agreed by Falkirk Council. The local authority has backed the proposal which had been under review amid concerns at is viability. Under the scheme the homes will be built in order to fund the construction of a new marina and commercial centre in the town, despite the original plan, which included a hotel, yacht club and shops, being hobbled by the impact of the global credit crunch. Secretary of local pressure group, Bo'ness means business, Bruce Henderson welcomed the greenlight from the council: "This is a major step forward and we can look forward to working with Falkirk Council and (developers) ING Real Estate to develop the project and drawn in further investment as a result. Most of Bo'ness will be celebrating."
(BBC Scotland Online) Read all today's property news from scotsman.com
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