DHL workers to take strike action

19 September 2012 Last updated at 07:37 ET

Workers at Cumbernauld-based DHL Supply Chain are to take strike action in a dispute over pay and the site's future.

The Unite union said more than 350 workers had rejected a pay offer amounting to an annual 2% increase for two years.

It added workers were concerned about the future of the Westfield site after key contractor Marks and Spencer announced distribution network changes.

A schedule for strike action will be announced "in due course".

Unite said more than 90% of ballot papers returned were in favour of industrial action.

The dispute mainly involves warehouse and logistics staff.

According to the union, more than 100 workers have been made redundant at the site in the last two years - with 15 jobs being lost in the summer following the Marks and Spencer restructuring announcement.

Unite regional industrial officer Tony Devlin said: "We've got to the point where the situation is untenable.

"This workforce readily accepted a global pay freeze in 2008 and has had to contend with a significant spate of redundancies in the last two years - their commitment to DHL and M&S is unquestionable.

"We've accepted the cuts and made proposals for the diversification of the business operation after the M&S announcement but have been continuously kept in the dark by DHL and M&S.

"The recent pay offer was the straw that broke the camel's back."

19 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-19647420#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

20.49 | 0 komentar | Read More

Trump 'advert complaints' upheld

Complaints about newspaper adverts commissioned by the Trump Organisation showing broken and rusting wind turbines under the headline 'Welcome to Scotland' have been upheld.

A picture in the Press and Journal newspaper showed the turbines, with a disclaimer admitting it was not taken in Scotland.
It was not enough to save the advert from criticism from the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).
Donald Trump is against wind farms.
The US billionaire is campaigning to prevent the construction of a major wind farm off the Aberdeen coast, close to his new golf course at Menie.
The advert warned: "Alex Salmond wants to build 8,750 of these monstrosities".
The ASA said the pictures had given a misleading impression of the possible consequences of the Scottish government's plans to use wind turbines.
The ASA said the advert should not be used again in its current form.

20.18 | 0 komentar | Read More

FSA 'concerns' about Bob Diamond

19 September 2012 Last updated at 09:02 ET

The UK's financial regulator has said it warned Barclays two years ago that Bob Diamond could be unsuitable to be appointed chief executive of the bank.

Newly-published letters reveal that the Financial Services Authority felt its investigation into the Libor rate-rigging scandal was relevant.

The FSA said it could not prejudge the appointment, but reserved the right to "reassess his suitability".

Mr Diamond resigned in July over claims Barclays' traders tried to rig Libor.

The letters were disclosed by the Commons' Treasury Committee, which has taken evidence on the Libor affair from Barclays, the FSA and the Bank of England.

According to a FSA file note, there was a meeting on 15 September 2010 between the regulator's chief, Hector Sants, and Barclays' then chairman, Marcus Agius.

At this meeting, the FSA says it told Mr Agius that the continuing Libor investigation could have a bearing on the bank's decision to appoint Mr Diamond. However, Mr Diamond had already been named chief executive of the bank and took up the post in January 2011.

In a letter sent to committee chairman Andrew Tyrie on 20 August 2012, Mr Sants writes: "The FSA was fully aware that the ongoing investigation might come to conclusions which would be relevant to Mr Diamond's suitability.

"However, at the time, since the investigation was not concluded, it would not have been appropriate to prejudge its outcome."

Referring to the meeting with Mr Agius, Mr Sants continues: "I specifically made clear that we reserved the right to re-assess his [Mr Diamond] suitability in the light of the conclusions reached by this investigation and requested he make this clear to Mr Diamond.

"Secondly, I would like to record that in that conversation, I made clear that our concerns about Barclays' culture were not some generic observation but specific to Barclays, and asked that these concerns be communicated by Mr Agius to Mr Diamond. Mr Agius confirmed that he would do this."

The information appears to be at odds with comments by Mr Agius, who has said that the FSA did not cast doubt on Mr Diamond's appointment.

Mr Diamond resigned after Barclays was fined more than £290m for rigging Libor benchmark interest rates.

19 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-19649147#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

20.18 | 0 komentar | Read More

BoE sees worse inflation outlook

19 September 2012 Last updated at 07:21 ET

Bank of England policymakers think inflation is set to slow less rapidly because of higher oil costs and possible food price rises.

Minutes from the latest meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) showed that they felt inflation was unlikely to slow as it had forecast in August.

They also showed all nine MPC members voted to hold rates and not increase the programme of quantitative easing.

However, one MPC member said there was "good case" for more QE.

More stimulus?

Figures released on Tuesday showed that inflation as measured by the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) fell to 2.5% in August, down from 2.6% in July.

Inflation is now much closer to the Bank of England's 2% target, having dropped from a peak of 5.2% in September last year.

However, the minutes from September's meeting of the MPC noted: "The rise in oil prices and the probable increase in utility and some food prices meant that the near-term outlook was for a less rapid fall in inflation than the Committee had thought at the time of its August Inflation Report projections."

All members of the MPC agreed to keep its programme of quantitative easing (QE) at £375bn.

Under QE, the Bank buys government bonds, hoping to create beneficial knock-on effects for the economy.

The latest minutes showed most members found the decision to maintain QE at the current level "straightforward".

But others felt extending it "was more likely than not to be needed in due course".

And one member said that "a good case could be made" for announcing an increase in QE immediately.

Several analysts have said they think the Bank will increase the QE programme above the current level.

Howard Archer, an analyst at IHS Global Insight, said his firm "strongly suspect" it will increase the programme by another £50bn in the fourth quarter of 2012.

Brian Hilliard of Societe Generale agreed, noting that this was the second consecutive MPC meeting at which increasing bond buying had been discussed.

"I don't think that is going to sway the majority until November, but the fact that it has been discussed two meetings in a row does point to a further expansion of QE in the November meeting," said Mr Hilliard.

19 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-19647433#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

18.48 | 0 komentar | Read More

Asos enjoys sales boost from US

19 September 2012 Last updated at 07:17 ET

Online fashion retailer Asos says a big increase in demand from US customers helped sales grow 31% in the three months to the end of August.

Overall sales increased to £141m in that period, up from £107.4m, but 65% of the sales increase came from the US.

The company said that sales outside the UK, European Union and the US jumped 53% to £47.4m in the period.

Chief executive Nick Robertson said it would hit full-year profit forecasts.

In the UK, Asos saw sales increase by 15% to £49.8m in the three months to 31 August, maintaining strong performance at home.

Asos has grown while many of its rivals that operate physical stores have struggled amid economic uncertainty.

For the year to 31 August, Asos saw a 91% increase in sales to US customers, totalling £49.5m, while sales outside the UK, the European Union and the US jumped by 94% to £165.2m.

For the year to the end of August, its UK sales totalled £205.2m - a 10% rise on the previous year.

In the same period, Asos said that it had five million active customers, defined as people who have shopped with Asos in the last 12 months - a 35% increase year-on-year.

Jean Roche, an analyst with stockbroking business Panmure Gordon, called the numbers "particularly impressive".

Meanwhile British fashion retailer French Connection has reported a first-half loss before tax of £6.3 million.

19 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-19647436#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

18.48 | 0 komentar | Read More

Amount paid in bonuses hits £37bn

19 September 2012 Last updated at 06:18 ET

The amount paid in bonuses to UK employees in the year to end-March rose 3% to £37bn - about £1,400 per worker - according to official figures.

Staff in the finance and insurance sector received £13bn of the total, 9% down on the previous year, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

However, the finance sector received 36% of all bonuses, even though just 4% of all employees work in the industry.

It amounted to £12,000 per employee working in finance and insurance.

The ONS said the industry with the second highest average bonus was the mining, quarrying and oil industries, with bonuses per employee worth £6,900 each.

This was an increase of 9% on the 2010-11 financial year.

In 2011-12, the average private sector worker received £1,700 in bonuses, more than five times the average public sector worker's bonus of £300.

But this public sector figure includes payments at the temporarily nationalised banks, such as RBS.

Excluding financial services, the average public sector bonus was £100.

19 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-19646398#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

17.49 | 0 komentar | Read More

Lonmin shares rise after pay deal

19 September 2012 Last updated at 05:13 ET Continue reading the main story

Shares in Lonmin jumped 9% in the first 20 minutes of trading in London, after the firm signed a pay deal with striking miners in South Africa.

The deal brings to an end a strike lasting nearly six weeks at the Marikana mine in Rustenburg.

The miners, who are mostly rock drill operators, cheered when they were told late on Tuesday that they would get pay rises of between 11% and 22%.

By mid-morning Lonmin shares had fallen back slightly, trading 3.5% higher.

The workers had been demanding a salary of 12,500 rand a month ($1,513; £935). They currently earn between 4,000 and 5,000 rand.

The agreement also includes a signing bonus of 2,000 rand for employees.

Last month, police opened fire on demonstrators at the mine in Marikana, killing 34 striking workers.

In total 44 people died at the Lonmin-owned mine in mid-August and many others were injured. Unrest has also spread to other mines.

19 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-19647318#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

16.21 | 0 komentar | Read More

Workers turn away from pensions

19 September 2012 Last updated at 04:59 ET

The number of people actively paying into a workplace pension scheme dropped for a third consecutive year in 2011, official figures show.

Some 8.2 million people were active members of pension schemes at work, down from 8.3 million the previous year, the Office for National Statistics said (ONS).

The fall came from a dip in membership in the private sector.

However, the figures are expected to pick up as a new pension policy starts.

A policy of automatic enrolment will be phased in from October that will see workers signed up to a workplace pension scheme, unless they opt out.

The government hopes that the policy - one of the biggest ever changes in the UK pension landscape - will encourage more people to save for their old age.

19 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-19646526#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

16.21 | 0 komentar | Read More

Zara owner Inditex profits up 32%

19 September 2012 Last updated at 04:31 ET

The world's largest clothing retailer, Inditex, which owns Zara, has posted a jump in first-half profit after opening new stores and gaining new customers.

Inditex reported a net profit of 944m euros ($1.23bn; £758m) for the six months to 31 July, up 32% on the same period last year.

Net sales rose 17% to 7.2bn euros, while like-for-like sales, which excludes new store openings, rose 7%.

Inditex's other brands include Massimo Dutti, Bershka and Oysho.

The group opened 166 stores in the first half of the year, taking its total store count to 5,693 across 85 countries.

It said it had invested 450m euros in its home market of Spain - in commercial and logistics activities aimed at supporting international growth.

Online push

Inditex also gave an update on trading in the current quarter. It said that sales between 1 August and 17 September were up 17%.

It is also making a push into online retailing. It launched Zara online in China on 5 September and has plans to start Massimo Dutti and Zara Home online sales in the US in October.

"The drivers are certainly there - the rapid roll-out of online sales and fast fashion - but even so it's a spectacular performance," said Societe Generale analyst Anne Critchlow.

"Online is allowing Inditex to access customers that wouldn't be near one of its concept stores," she added.

Shares in Inditex were up 3.8% in morning trading in Madrid.

19 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-19645749#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

15.48 | 0 komentar | Read More

Newbury Racecourse in land sale

19 September 2012 Last updated at 04:02 ET

The owners of Newbury Racecourse have sold part of the land to property developers who intend to build 1,500 homes over the next 10 years.

Newbury Racecourse plc has sold land on its western, central and eastern sites to David Wilson Homes, part of Barratt.

David Wilson will pay "a minimum of £42.6m for the land", with the proceeds funding new racecourse facilities.

The company said it expected housebuilding to start this year, with homes going on sale in mid-2013.

The sale is intended to fund a major upgrade of the Berkshire racecourse.

Facilities for horses to be bred and cared for inside the racecourse grounds, including a new facility to house stable staff, new stables, a new paddock and improved facilities for owners and trainers are to be discussed by the board.

Newbury Racecourse has estimated that its improvement plans will cost up to £12m, with works commencing - if funding is in place - in 2014 and 2015.

As part of the sale, David Wilson will pay £5.1m up front, with most of the balance near the end of the decade-long project.

Newbury Racecourse hopes raise more money from investors on the back of the proceeds from David Wilson.

Consultation with the local community on the plans will continue through the Newbury Racecourse Public Liaison Group.

The owners of the racecourse have said that they want it to be profitable all year round, not just when major events are held.

Dominic Burke, chairman of Newbury Racecourse, said that the sale was "a key stage in our long term strategy of releasing value from our land assets to develop the facilities and infrastructure of the racecourse".

About 30% of the homes to be built are intended to be affordable and shared-equity properties.

19 Sep, 2012

-
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-19646166#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
--
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com

15.19 | 0 komentar | Read More