INDUSTRYAggreko shares power down after weak demand warning AGGREKO shares dropped 6 per cent yesterday after the company revealed it has cut its capital expenditure plans and warned of further weakening in deman
d (
Scotsman). The Glasgow-based group, which supplies temporary power generators to customers around the world, admitted demand had deteriorated in the second quarter in the US, Europe and the Middle East. But the firm also revealed that thanks to the weakness of sterling against the dollar, this year's profits could still exceed last year's record level.
Engineering survivor set fair after sale to employeesA survivor from Scotland's Victorian engineering glory days is being sold to its employees after its owner spurned the prospect of a lucrative overseas sale in order to protect his staff (
Herald).
Frank Phair has agreed to sell Stewart Buchanan group, the valves-to-gauges maker, to its 156 employees in a deal that is expected to ensure the firm will remain in north Lanarkshire for years to come.
With at least three other owner-managers in the process of selling their firms to their employees in Scotland, the disposal comes at a time when employee buyouts seem to be enjoying a marked increase in popularity.
Read all today's industry news from scotsman.comENERGY & UTILITIESSovereign reduces debt with £420,000 property disposalSovereign Oilfield Group, the oil services group that recently completed a long-awaited refinancing, has raised £420,000 to reduce debt as it battles a slowdown in activity in the North Sea (
Herald).
The Aberdeen-based firm raised the money by selling a property in Cambuslang. This had been vacated by RDT Precision Engineers drilling business, which Sovereign bought in 2007 under a debt- funded acquisition programme.
Read all today's energy and utilities news from scotsman.comMEDIA & LEISURE200 jobs lost as Setanta goes off air into administrationTHE UK channels of sports broadcaster Setanta shut down last night after the business collapsed in Britain and went into administration with the loss of 200 jobs (
Scotsman). Viewers were greeted with an on-screen message which said the firm had "ceased trading in Great Britain". The Irish firm – which has been hit by the loss of football television rights in Scotland and England – went off air just before 6pm. The wind-down of Setanta's British business, which has 420 staff, will mean 200 job losses, administrators Deloitte confirmed. Setanta's international and Ireland businesses are continuing to trade on air while talks with possible buyers are under way, Deloitte added.
Read all today's media and leisure news from scotsman.comPERSONAL FINANCEPensions crunched for millions of staff as 96% of firms plan shake-upTHE economic downturn is accelerating the shake-up of company pension schemes, with 96 per cent of firms planning to change the pension provision they offer, says research (
Scotsman). Changes are planned to both final-salary and defined-contribution schemes as 68 per cent of companies try to cut costs, say PricewaterhouseCoopers. Three-quarters of companies said proposed changes to pension tax relief for high-earners, announced in the Budget, had reduced their motivation to provide any sort of pension.
Read all today's personal finance news from scotsman.comRETAILComet-owner Kesa reports losses Kesa Electricals, the company that owns Comet in the UK and Darty in France, has reported a full-year loss and predicted another difficult year (
BBC). In the year to the end of April it made a pre-tax loss of £81.8m, compared with a pre-tax profit of £128.8m last year. The retailer said it had taken steps to reduce costs, especially at Comet, to reduce the impact of the recession. The losses were largely due to a write-down of £118.5m in the value of its Spanish unit Menaje del Hogars.
Read all today's retail news from scotsman.comScotsman Business ClubGet to the heart of the issues affecting Scottish business at
www.scotsman.com/businessclub. Features include blogs from The Scotsman's formidable team of business writers - including Bill Jamieson, Martin Flanagan, Peter MacMahon and Scott Reid, a diary of forthcoming company announcements and networking events and video interviews with leading business experts covering a wide range of useful topics."
