Ackermann reasserts grip on Deutsche 23 Sep 2004 First he changed the executive team; now he s eased out Ulrich Cartellieri, one of his big critics on the supervisory board. Recent negative publicity has strengthened Ackermann's hand. But it will take more than a few high profile changes to get unity on strategy.
Warner Music plans $5bn IPO – report 23 Sep 2004 Having cut out the fat, Edgar Bronfman is now planning on selling the business at nearly double the price he paid only a few months ago. He may be getting ahead of hismelf. The music industry is still shrinking, and it is worse at Warner. A deal with EMI isn't straightforward.
Inditex sales growth comes at a cost 23 Sep 2004 The Spanish group s costs are rising faster than sales as they have done since 2002. Should likeforlike sales falter, its opearing profit could be savaged.
French budget does the job without thrills 23 Sep 2004 Sarkozy wanted to please both Brussels and his future voters. Generous accounting and a high growth estimate have made that possible. But this is not the blueprint for a liberal revolution. The government is offering no more than modest tinkering.
Electrolux adds to the profits gloom 23 Sep 2004 Yet another consumer staples company is struggling with high input costs and a lack of pricing power. Electrolux has been propping up its share price with a fat dividend. But doubts are surfacing over its ability to keep paying out.
Gardening leave crosses the Atlantic 23 Sep 2004 Merrill Lynch is importing the practice, de rigueur in the City, of forcing sixmonth notice periods on its top USbased executives. Short term, this move may help Merrill protect the franchise. Longer term, it could jack up costs for the investment banking industry.
Companies should beware lure of private equity 22 Sep 2004 One recent US deal, the $750m purchase of American Household by Warburg Pincus and Jarden, begs the question. Warburg received a sweetheart deal not available to Jarden s shareholders. Equity investors had better watch out.
Markets place too much faith in economy 22 Sep 2004 For three months, an economic slowdown has helped financial markets. But the relationship between the two is fragile. If economic weakness worsens, equities and credit spreads are vulnerable. If growth picks up, bonds will falter.
Morgan Stanley cracks in 3Q 22 Sep 2004 The investment bank missed estimates by a mile as trading income plunged without other businesses picking up the slack. This is the slipup investors have long feared from Wall Street s addiction to proprietary trading.
Carrefour recovery stalls 22 Sep 2004 Recent price cuts haven t restored market share as hoped. The French supermarket group is losing ground again. Sure, more price cuts are on the way and those might work. The worry though is that Carrefour is on a downward slide.
Man Group loses argument on fund performance 22 Sep 2004 The fundofhedge funds manager has long played down the role of investment performance in attracting investors cash. But new research suggests performance is actually the most important driver just as everyone thought.
Kabel Deutschland junks cable deal 22 Sep 2004 The German cable operator s attempt to buy three smaller rivals, and subssequent concessions, didn t pass muster with the regulators. This is a shame. KDG's withdrawal will make consolidation in Germany's cable industry more difficult. The German cable operator s attempt to buy three smaller rivals, and subsequent concessions, didn t pass muster with the regulators.
VW share buyback strategy backfires 22 Sep 2004 The German carmaker has wasted huge sums buying its own ordinary shares. And just to try and immunise itself against a bidder. VW can't recover the money it has wasted. The least it could do is to cancel the treasury shares.
Shell needs oil to stay high 22 Sep 2004 The oil and gas giant is spending more and producing less. To justify that, it has increased its longterm oil price assumption to $25. That may not be overly aggressive. But even if oil stays high, there appears to be no quick fix for Shell s upstream business.
Tesco is winning the food fight 21 Sep 2004 The UK supermarket has taken advantage of turmoil at Sainsbury and Safeway to increase its market share. But after the recent share price run, that doesn't necessarily mean there is more value to be had in the shares. The UK supermarket is knocking the socks off J Sainsbury and Safeway and gaining market share. And all that without losing any margin.
BBVA makes a break from Santander 21 Sep 2004 With its $850m purchase of Texan bank Laredo, BBVA is further differentiating itself from its Spanish rival. Santander may be bolder. And BBVA s piecemeal approach to acquisitions may require patience. But at least it doesn t look too risky.
Stelios hits the warpath 21 Sep 2004 The Greek entrepreneur is being treated like a stowaway on his own yacht with Stelmar s $677m agreed sale to private equity group Fortress. But Stelios is not walking the plank without a fight. And he has some good arguments for taking on the Stelmar board.
Goldman, Lehman beat estimates 21 Sep 2004 The investment banks aren t going down without a fight. Markets in the 3Q may have been crummy, but these results are not. Still, they are coming at a cost. Goldman turned up the risk and Lehman ratcheted up the costs. And returns on equity are generally lower. The investment banks are putting up a fight. Markets in Q3 may have been crummy, but these results are not.
M&S launches buyback amid dismal trading 21 Sep 2004 The trading meltdown is grim. But that isn't the end of the world for CEO Stuart Rose. He has been able to cut back the price range for the £2.3bn buyback to below the 400p Philip Green offered.
Oil industry mergers could be coming soon 21 Sep 2004 The industry talk is about consolidation. Oil is getting harder to find and costs are rising. With these challenges, bigger is better. But chief executives are still nervous. A merger rush needs oil and gas prices to fall, or more confidence that they will stay high.
Slow growth causes consumer goods troubles 21 Sep 2004 True, Tesco and WalMart are doing fine. They have a winning growth formula. But the overall industry is quite mature. And profit growth is difficult in a stagnant market. Expect more problem companies. It s a shame they re too big for buyouts.
Havas to raise E400m at narrow discount 20 Sep 2004 The advertising group has shown a classic French aversion to issuing shares at a deep discount. No wonder it has been forced to cosy up to French raider, Vincent Bollore.
Berlin should not legislate on executive pay 20 Sep 2004 Germany is mooting a law to force disclosure of individual executive salaries. This looks unnecessary and could hinder transparency. German companies are increasingly complying with the voluntary code. And the proposed law may provide an excuse for only partial disclosure.
Colgate, Unilever warn on profits 20 Sep 2004 Both companies are having to increase marketing costs to get topline growth. Trouble is, raw materials costs are also rising. At Unilever at least there are some clear areas for improvement in its management structure. Colgate will need to grin and bear it At Unilever at least there are some clear areas for improvement in its management structure. Colgate will need to grin and bear it.
Opec only seems to be master of the oil market 20 Sep 2004 The cartel loves high prices. So it is happy with speculative buying and Russian problems. It does not want to push too hard on production. But its strength is fragile. Supply is not very short. And high prices could bring more nonOpec investment. And less Opec control.
Citi would struggle to justify £1.1bn Caz bid 20 Sep 2004 True, it may have successfully integrated Schroders. But Caz would be harder to swallow not least because of the conflicts it would bring. If Citi was really serious about paying up, Caz might find it hard to reject. But its staff are unlikely to relish absorption into Citi.
EC moves to curb share blocking 17 Sep 2004 Most European countries restrict share dealing ahead of general meetings. And this has proved a major disincentive to shareholder activism. The Commission s attempt to remove these restrictions is one of its wiser initiatives.
Investment banks tussle with cost-creep 17 Sep 2004 Costs have risen in the last year and revenues are declining. Trading income is falling and corporate finance businesses are treading water. Thirdquarter results from Goldman and Morgan Stanley next week may showcase how Wall Street is coping with this dynamic.
Sainsbury settles with Peter Davis, non-execs resign 17 Sep 2004 The nonexecs responsible for Davis paypackage and for embarassingly trying to wriggle out of it deserved to go. Meanwhile, reaching a settlement with Davis should help the supermarket group put this circus behind it.
Since Boeing too receives subsidies, its challenge looks like a case of the pot calling the kettle black. 17 Sep 2004 The move is a sign of the US aircraft maker s growing exasperation at losing market share to its smaller European rival.