Author Archive: Jeremy Parkinson
Seadrill sees growth and M&A after Q2 beat
Norway’s Seadrill Ltd, the world’s number two deepwater oil rig group, is ready to throw its weight around now that the Gulf of Mexico oil spill has made life harder for smaller players. “We see the current market volatility as a good opportunity to look for investment opportunities,” the group controlled by shipping tycoon John […]
Independent News revenue rises, advertising improves
Irish publishing group Independent News & Media has posted its first revenue growth in more than two years as recovering advertising pushed first-half sales up eight percent. Pretax profit excluding one-off items rose 39 percent. The Dublin-based group has had to sharpen its focus on titles in Ireland, as well as in South Africa, New […]
Fragile Romania goverment fights to defend IMF reforms
Painful cost cuts and tax rises have eroded support for Prime Minister Emil Boc’s centrist coalition. His opponents want tax cuts and could even topple the eight-month-old government. Whether Boc’s government survives or not, a divided parliament is likely to prevent much-needed reforms and leave Romania struggling to meet its commitments under a 20 billion […]
Dubai World prized assets on sale to cut debt
Dubai World is prepared to sell prized assets including previously ringfenced ports firm DP World in a bid to raise as much as $19.4bn to repay creditors, a document obtained by reporters shows. The document, presented on July 22 to creditors at Dubai’s lavish Atlantis Hotel, also revealed that the state-owned conglomerate’s debt stood at […]
Ukraine wants to revise gas deal with Russia
The base price for Russian natural gas is still disadvantageous for Ukraine despite a new deal reached last April and the Kiev government will press Moscow to bring it down, Ukraine’s prime minister claims. “We have set as a goal a revision of the extremely unfavourable agreement with the Russian Federation and we will continue […]
Aggreko ups 2010 view after orders, profits jump
Aggreko said events such as the Vancouver Winter Olympics and the soccer World Cup, for which it provided generators and chillers, brought its Local Business unit £48m ($74m) in revenues in the first half. “We believe that we will make further good progress in the second half and the outcome for the year as a […]
South Africa looks to boost investment from China
South African President Jacob Zuma has called for greater investment in his country from China, as South Africa seeks to narrow its trade deficit with Beijing and bring growth to its sluggish economy. South Africa is looking for expanded trade that will help it meet its development needs, especially by improving infrastructure and livelihoods, Zuma […]
Antofagasta H1 EPS up 92%, cuts year output target
Chilean miner Antofagasta has posted a near doubling in first-half earnings per share on higher production and a rebound in prices, but trimmed its annual production target “Group copper production from the three operating mines is expected to be approximately 530,000 tonnes, slightly below the forecast of 543,000 tonnes announced in March, reflecting updated forecasts […]
What could emerge from Pakistan/IMF talks?
The International Monetary Fund is to review Pakistan’s budget and macroeconomic prospects following catastrophic flooding during talks with senior Pakistani officials in Washington. The meetings are set to focus on the future of Pakistan’s $10.66bn IMF programme agreed upon in 2008, which faced hiccups over meeting the fiscal deficit target even before the floods hit. […]
HSBC to buy up to 70 pct of S.Africa’s Nedbank
HSBC will buy up to 70 percent of South Africa’s Nedbank, in a potential $6.8bn deal that would give Europe’s largest lender a bigger presence in Africa’s top economy and a gateway to the fast-growing continent. HSBC and Anglo-South African insurer Old Mutual, which owns a controlling stake in Nedbank, said in separate statements that […]
