The Evening Standard (London, England) articles from July 2003

The Evening Standard (London, England) archives from July 2003

Evening Standard, London, Business Briefs Column.
July 1, 2003... Jul. 1--BRITISH INSURER SELLS OUT IN OZ FOR UKPOUND 130 MILLION: Australian conglomerate Wesfarmers said today it will buy the Australian and New Zealand operations of UK insurer Edward Lumley Holdings for A$320 million (UKpound 130 million)....

U.K. Brewer Hits Target Despite Drooping Sales.
July 1, 2003... Byline: Jim Armitage Jul. 1--Scottish & Newcastle, the brewer currently selling 1500 of its pubs and restaurants, today reported robust profits despite the tough economic environment for the world's biggest beer companies. Drinkers'...

U.K. Carpet-Retail King Bags UKpound 5 Million Dividend.
July 1, 2003... Jul. 1--Carpet king Lord Harris of Peckham is nearly UKpound 5 million richer after he raised the dividend payout from his Carpetright empire today, despite marginal profit and sales growth in the business, writes Steve Hawkes. A big push...

British Financial-Services Agency Turns Up Heat on Misleading Advertisements.
July 1, 2003... Byline: Patrick Hosking Jul. 1--The Financial Services Authority today launched a fresh crackdown on advertising by savings institutions after coming across a rash of misleading adverts. The City regulator said it had forced banks,...

MGM Joins Front-Runners in Race for Vivendi Film Assets.
July 1, 2003... Byline: Ross Tieman Jul. 1--Hollywood legend Metro Goldwyn Mayer is set to join the front-runners bidding for US entertainment assets put on the block by debt-burdened Vivendi Universal. MGM, owned by tycoon Kirk Kerkorian, is selling...

Third-Generation Mobile-Phone Launch Goes on Hold in Hong Kong.
July 1, 2003... Byline: Jake Lloyd-Smith Jul. 1--Hutchison Whampoa, the Hong Kong conglomerate behind Britain's pioneering third-generation (3G) phone service 3, claims soaring demand for new handsets in the UK and elsewhere will force it to delay the...

U.K. Music, DVDs Retailer Enjoys Good Profit Vibes.
July 1, 2003... Jul. 1--HMV, Britain's biggest music and DVDs retailer, and a leading bookseller, increased its profits by a fifth in its first year as a publicly-quoted company. The company floated in May last year at 192 pence a share. Since then it has...

German Politicians Seek Bank Inquiry.
July 2, 2003... Byline: Allan Hall Jul. 2--BERLIN--The crisis at WestLB and its high-flying London dealmakers deepened today as German politicians demanded a fresh inquiry into the bank. That comes as the German bank's board meets today to discuss...

Evening Standard, London, Business Briefs Column.
July 2, 2003... Jul. 2--SERVICES LEAD HONG KONG'S RECOVERY FROM SARS: Hong Kong's economy grew in June, its first expansion since the outbreak in March of the Sars epidemic. The Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 50.2, from 41.2 in May. The recovery was strong...

BP on Track for Profits Surge in Second Quarter.
July 2, 2003... Byline: Robert Lea Jul. 2--Oil giant BP today indicated that it expects to report strong results for the second quarter of the year just ended. While oil and gas production, refining and marketing figures show a markedly stronger...

Beckham's Move Brings Bonus to Shareholders in British Team Manchester United.
July 2, 2003... Byline: Robert Lea Jul. 2--Manchester United shareholders are set for a multi-million pound special payout in the autumn, already being dubbed the "Beckham dividend". After David Beckham's move to Real Madrid, United is under pressure...

British Pair Shine as Gucci Sales, Profits Collapse.
July 2, 2003... Jul. 2--Dedicated followers of fashion doubled their demand for clothes from British designers Alexander McQueen and Stella McCartney of the Gucci Group stable but left many of its other products on the peg. Sales and profits at the rump of...

Financial Journals Publisher Incisive Media Buys Insurance Age Magazine.
July 2, 2003... Jul. 2--Incisive Media, the financial journals publisher, today bought Insurance Age, one of the best-known titles in the sector, from rival Informa for UKpound 1.05 million. The deal brings together the two leading titles in the insurance...

British Shops' Slump Prompts Calls for Rate Cut.
July 2, 2003... Byline: Jim Armitage Jul. 2--Business leaders issued fresh calls for an interest rate cut as it emerged today that British shops suffered a severely disappointing June. Declining consumer confidence bit hard, according to the...

Hong Kong Telecommunications Firm's Losses Soar to UKpound 4 Billion.
July 2, 2003... Byline: Jake Lloyd-Smith Jul. 2--Hong Kong's dominant telecoms group Pacific Century CyberWorks, today restated figures for last year under US accounting rules, showing losses rose almost sevenfold to HK$52 billion (UKpound 4 billion). ...

Airbus Opens Plant in North Wales, Pledges to Create 1,700 Jobs.
July 4, 2003... Byline: Robert Lea Jul. 4--Airbus, the European aircraft maker, today pledged to create 1700 British jobs as it opened the UK's largest new factory, a UKpound 380 million plant to help build the world's largest airliner. The factory,...

Evening Standard, London, Asian Markets Column.
July 4, 2003... Byline: Jake Lloyd-Smith Jul. 4--THAILAND SUCCESS STORY BRINGS SMILES ALL ROUND: Thailand, which sells itself far and wide and the "land of smiles" -- has certainly put a few grins on investors' faces this year with a robust performance....

Evening Standard, London, Business Insider Column.
July 4, 2003... Jul. 4--CHERIE'S PR BEAUTY CONTEST: If my information is correct, the final split has occurred between Cherie Blair and her abject husband's crisis management team. She used to rely on Fiona Millar, common-law wife of Alastair Campbell, to look...

London Financial District's Cocaine Culture Continues to Thrive.
July 4, 2003... Byline: James Rossiter Jul. 4--Lurid revelations about widespread cocaine and alcohol abuse in the Cantor Fitzgerald unfair-dismissal trial have shone an unwelcome light on the City's drug-taking culture. While the judge today started...

British Football Team Manchester United Works Hard for the Yankee Dollar.
July 4, 2003... Byline: Richard Thomson Jul. 4--American sports writers regularly refer to major US teams, such as baseball's New York Yankees, as "the world's greatest sports franchise". Even in the hyped-up style of sports journalism, this is ridiculous...

Evening Standard, London, Anthony Hilton Column.
July 4, 2003... Byline: Anthony Hilton Jul. 4--HARSH TRUTH FOR TAKEOVER PANEL: It is a daunting thought that negotiations on a Europe-wide takeover directive have been going on for longer than most people under 35 have worked in the City -- it is almost...

Liberty Media's QVC Buy Casts Doubt over Drive for Vivendi Universal.
July 4, 2003... Byline: Bill Condie Jul. 4--Liberty Media's bid for the entertainment assets of Vivendi Universal has been thrown into question after the US cable group unveiled plans to raise its stake in QVC, the home-shopping network. Some analysts...

Evening Standard, London, Market Report Column.
July 4, 2003... Jul. 4--REUTERS LEADS WAY ON BROKER'S UPGRADES HINT: Media group and financial information provider Reuters was the subject of good news today after Morgan Stanley said there was scope for significant upgrades. The broker is playing it...

Wall Street Earnings Lose Some Luster But Outlook Is Much Brighter.
July 4, 2003... Byline: Lauren Chambliss Jul. 4--Wall Street investors are getting a conflicting preview of the forthcoming second-quarter earnings season, knowing that the key numbers from America's corporations could make or break the back of the stock...

Evening Standard, London, Business Briefs Column.
July 4, 2003... Jul. 4--SINGAPORE INDUSTRY BACK IN RUDE HEALTH: Singapore's manufacturing sector expanded in June after three months of contraction, a survey of purchasing managers showed, suggesting that the economy may now be recovering as the impact of the...

Surging Sales Pave the Way for British Building-Materials Group Marshalls.
July 4, 2003... Byline: Jim Armitage Jul. 4--Marshalls, which made the paving slabs covering the revamped Trafalgar Square, today reported surging sales despite the apparent economic gloom. The building materials firm, which has enjoyed strong trading...

U.K. Bookmaker William Hill Gallops toward Record Profit.
July 4, 2003... Jul. 4--Bookmaker William Hill joined the nation in mourning Tim Henman's defeat at Wimbledon but today sent analysts running to upgrade their full-year profit forecasts anyway. Although it made money from the flood of bets for Henman to...

United Kingdom Concrete Firm Suffers from Weaker Demand in London.
July 4, 2003... Jul. 4--RMC is battling softer demand in London as the economic gloom casts a shadow over the construction sector. Finance director Andrew Auer said the market for ready mixed concrete was down by 10 percent in the South-East as commercial...

Battle for London Department Store Heats Up As Rival-Bid Deadline Nears.
July 4, 2003... Byline: Jim Armitage Jul. 4--Colourful entrepreneur Robert Tchenguiz was today expected to "put or shut up" on whether to launch his UKpound 616 million bid for Selfridges. The Iraqi multi-millionaire has until the end of play today to...

British Retailer Harrods Picks New Chief Executive, Beefs Up Management Team.
July 4, 2003... Byline: Fiona Walsh Jul. 4--Knightsbridge store group Harrods has found a new chief executive, filling the gap left by previous boss Max Rigelman, who quit abruptly in April after only two months in the job. The new chief, Richard...

U.K. Hotel Magnate Sets Up UKpound 130 Million War Chest for Acquisitions.
July 4, 2003... Byline: Jim Armitage Jul. 4--Sir Rocco Forte today set up a financing deal with Bank of Scotland giving his group a UKpound 130 million war chest to buy luxury hotels. The magnate's RF Hotels last night completed the acquisition of...

U.K. Housebuilder Invests UKpound 500,000 in In-House Training Centre.
July 4, 2003... Jul. 4--Housebuilder Redrow is pumping UKpound 500,000 into a new school for builders. The new in-house training centre at Tamworth, Staffordshire, will cost about UKpound 400,000 a year to run, providing about 400 courses to Redrow staff...

Russian Oil Executive Quizzed by Prosecutors about Theft Allegations.
July 4, 2003... Byline: Jonathan Prynn Jul. 4--Russia's wealthiest man, Mikhail Khodorkovsky -- a close business ally of new Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich -- has been quizzed by Moscow prosecutors about UKpound 170 million theft allegations. ...

British Retail Chain WH Smith Names New Chief Executive.
July 4, 2003... Byline: Fiona Walsh Jul. 4--High Street retailer WH Smith has poached Kate Swann from the Argos catalogue stores chain to be its new chief executive, replacing Richard Handover, who will step up to become chairman. The appointment was...

Securities and Exchange Commission Gets Extra Staff to Cope with Scandals.
July 4, 2003... Jul. 4--President George Bush has cleared the way for the US markets regulator to fast-track the hiring of 800 extra staff as it struggles to cope with a spate of corporate scandals. The move, which will see the rapid addition of...

Canadian Aluminium Giant Launches Hostile Bid for French Rival.
July 7, 2003... Byline: Ross Tieman Jul. 7--Canadian aluminium giant Alcan today launched a hostile euro3.49 billion (UKpound 2.40 billion) takeover bid for French rival Pechiney -- which immediately declared the move unwelcome. Alcan is offering...

Evening Standard, London, Asian Markets Column.
July 7, 2003... Byline: Bill Condie Jul. 7--AMBITIOUS SINGTEL GETS FIRST FOREIGN CHAIRMAN: An unprecedented international appointment at Singapore Telecommunications was given a cautious thumbs up by the markets today as its shares rose 0.67 percent to...

Evening Standard, London, Business Insider Column.
July 7, 2003... Jul. 7--BANKING ON THEIR FREEDOM: Expatriate American bankers and lawyers have just completed their annual baseball tournament, which runs for several weeks and involves representatives from most of the investment banks and major law firms. The...

International Monetary Fund Joins Lobbying for Stronger Chinese Yuan.
July 7, 2003... Byline: Bill Condie Jul. 7--The International Monetary Fund has added its voice to a growing chorus urging China to allow its currency to appreciate. At a meeting of the 10 European and 14 Asian countries in Indonesia's resort island...

London's Biggest Money Broker Comes under Fire over Top Chief's Profit Sharing.
July 7, 2003... Byline: Jonathan Prynn Jul. 7--A profit-share scheme for senior directors at the City's biggest money broking group, Icap, has come under attack from the National Association of Pension Funds. The NAPF said the fund, which could give chief...

Evening Standard, London, Anthony Hilton Column.
July 7, 2003... Byline: Anthony Hilton Jul. 7--TORY BLIND SPOT ON THE RAILWAYS: If we had a political Opposition worthy of the name, it would be the Government, not a few unfortunate railway executives, who would be due for an appearance in the dock for...

Plans for Building London Indoor Ski Slopes Get Back on Track.
July 7, 2003... Byline: Steve Hawkes Jul. 7--Plans to build one of the country's largest indoor ski slopes in east London are back on, with two bidders battling it out to take over the UKpound 20 million London Snow World venture at "Beckton Alps". ...

Evening Standard, London, Market Report Column.
July 7, 2003... Byline: Michael Clark Jul. 7--WESTON BUYING SIGNALS END-GAME FOR SELFRIDGES: Canadian billionaire Galen Weston has moved in for the kill in his UKpound 628 million battle for control of department store Selfridges. On Friday, he waded...

Clothing Retailer French Connection Wants to Buy London Building.
July 7, 2003... Byline: James Rossiter Jul. 7--Motorists could be in for a big FCUK greeting on the A4 route in to London, depending on talks to buy the bulbous brown Ark building near Hammersmith. Clothing retailer French Connection, which sells...

Low-Fare Airline EasyJet Loses More Ground to Ryanair As Growth Dips.
July 7, 2003... Byline: Robert Lea Jul. 7--Passenger growth has fallen again at easyJet, the low-fares airline that merged with Go a year ago. Its latest figures show easyJet carried 1.75 million passengers in June, a rise of 13 percent on the number...

British Electricals Company Hits Market with UKpound 1 Billion Price Tag.
July 7, 2003... Byline: Fiona Walsh Jul. 7--KESA Electricals was given a UKpound 1 billion price-tag as shares in the company, a spin-off from Kingfisher, made their stock market debut today. They opened towards the bottom end of analysts'...

750,000 Golden Parachute Protects Chief of British Football Club.
July 7, 2003... Byline: Jonathan Prynn Jul. 7--Chelsea managing director Trevor Birch is in line for a UKpound 750,000 pay-off if he is axed by the football club's new owner, Russian billionaire Ramon Abramovich. Birch, appointed in March last year...

British Agency to Take No Further Action against Drug-Testing Software Firm.
July 7, 2003... Byline: Malcolm Withers Jul. 7--The Financial Services Authority is to take no further action against Cyprotex after fining three individuals, including its main shareholder, a total of UKpound 1.15 million last month for market abuse. ...

Stock of Anglo-Dutch Steel Group Corus Traded Heavily on Exchange.
July 7, 2003... Jul. 7--Corus was the heaviest traded stock among the second-liners with more than 47 million shares changing hands as the price held steady at 181/2 pence. Seven months ago an Amsterdam court scuppered Pechiney's bid to acquire Corus's...

Big Four Accountants in United Kingdom Take UKpound 200 Million Hit.
July 8, 2003... Byline: Robert Lea Jul. 8--The top UK accounting firms have lost more than UKpound 200 million a year in fees from major corporate clients on the back of the Enron scandal, the Evening Standard can reveal. A global clampdown on the...

Evening Standard, London, Asian Markets Column.
July 8, 2003... Byline: Bill Condie Jul. 8--Hong Kong property developer Cheung Kong, controlled by Asia's richest man, Li Ka-shing, announced today that it will sell five Hong Kong shopping centres to a Singapore unit trust for HK$3.05 billion-$3.11...

Evening Standard, London, Business Insider Column.
July 8, 2003... Jul. 8--BLOOMBERG PARTY LEAVES MARK: Days after Stowe was voted one of Britain's 10 most beautiful gardens, its gardeners are weeping into their wheelbarrows as they grapple with a huge clearing-up operation. It started on Sunday, after...

Evening Standard, London, Anthony Hilton Column.
July 8, 2003... Byline: Anthony Hilton Jul. 8--MAKING THE BEST OF REGULATION: The Institute of Directors has a seminar coming up that will look at the rising tide of regulation in Britain and what can be done about it. It is to be chaired by King Canute...

Evening Standard, London, Market Report Column.
July 8, 2003... Jul. 8--BSKYB LOOKING TO SHIFT FOOTBALL RIGHTS GOALPOSTS: Rupert Murdoch's satellite broadcaster BSkyB has begun renegotiating its UKpound 1.1 billion Premier League contract, which expires at the end of next season. A new offer has to be...

British Real Estate Group Considers Possible Partners for Huge Project.
July 8, 2003... Byline: James Rossiter Jul. 8--Property group Chelsfield is shortlisting partners who will inject UKpound 200 million into its giant White City retail and leisure centre in return for a 50 percent stake in it. Nigel Hugill, chief...

Profits at Britain's Safeway Grocery Chain Hold Up amid Five-Way Bid Race.
July 8, 2003... Byline: Fiona Walsh Jul. 8--First-quarter profits at Safeway will match the previous year's figure, excluding bid-related costs, despite the distractions of the ferocious five-way battle for control of Britain's fourth-largest supermarkets...

Britain Leads World in Thieving, Fraud.
July 8, 2003... Byline: Malcolm Withers Jul. 8--The British are a nation of thieves, taking goods from shops, offices and factories at a greater rate than in any other country. British companies also suffer some of the highest levels of fraud in the...

Evening Standard, London, Business Briefs Column.
July 8, 2003... Jul. 8--RESTRUCTURING EXPERT SLAMS U.K. PENSIONS PLAN: Government proposals to safeguard pensions have been slammed by corporate recovery expert Begbies Traynor as counter-productive. "Current employment protection legislation already...

British Business Leader Stands Firm on Measures to Reform Boardrooms.
July 8, 2003... Jul. 8--Derek Higgs today insisted his controversial plans to shake up British boardrooms would not be watered down as he defended his "common-sense" measures. The former investment banker, who has endured a storm of criticism from...

Chairman of Britain's Marks & Spencer to Take His Pay in Stock.
July 8, 2003... Byline: Patrick Hosking Jul. 8--Marks & Spencer's part-time chairman Luc Vandevelde today announced plans to give up his cash salary and take his remuneration in the retailer's shares. M&S said it would pay him 13,500 shares a month,...

Children's Book Publisher Scholastic Expects Lower Quarterly Earnings.
July 8, 2003... Jul. 8--Without the help of Harry Potter, JK Rowling's US publisher, Scholastic, expects to announce less-than-magical results later this month. The children's book publisher says it expects to report fourth-quarter net profit of between...

Rothschild Banking Dynasty to Merge Interests in London, Paris.
July 8, 2003... Byline: Nick Goodway Jul. 8--European banking dynasty Rothschild today decided to merge its London and Paris interests under the leadership of Baron David de Rothschild. The head of the English branch of the family, Sir Evelyn de...

United Kingdom Water Utility AWG Admits Mistake over UKpound 500,000 Bonuses.
July 8, 2003... Jul. 8--Executives at AWG who oversaw the water group's much-criticised financial restructuring were paid nearly UKpound 500,000 in special bonuses that the company now admits are in breach of corporate governance best practice. According...

Russian Oil Firm Yukos Poised to Seal Acquisition of Rival Sibneft.
July 8, 2003... Jul. 8--Russian oil major Yukos has shrugged off the arrest of its key shareholder and is forging ahead with the acquisition of smaller rival Sibneft, which will net Chelsea FC's new owner Roman Abramovich the lion's share of $3 billion...

Evening Standard, London, Asian Markets Column.
July 9, 2003... Byline: Ray Heath Jul. 9--LINUX JAPAN DEAL STEALS A MARCH ON MICROSOFT: In a blow to Microsoft, computer giant Fujitsu said today that it, IBM Japan and Oki Electric Industry have won a 188 million yen (UKpound 1 million) contract to...

Evening Standard, London, Business Insider Column.
July 9, 2003... Jul. 9--SUPERMUM'S TRAFFIC-STOPPER: My friend Nicola Horlick, head of SocGen Asset Management, has been sounding off about the congestion charge in the latest issue of Square Meal magazine. "The improvement has been only marginal," says the...

British Haulier Christian Salvesen Faces Revolt over Chief's Rolling Contract.
July 9, 2003... Byline: Robert Lea Jul. 9--Troubled haulier Christian Salvesen faces a shareholder revolt at its annual meeting today as investors protest against chief executive Edward Roderick's two-year rolling contract, which would hand him a UKpound...

Evening Standard, London, Anthony Hilton Column.
July 9, 2003... Byline: Anthony Hilton Jul. 9--The launching of another new initiative on corporate reporting, this time by David Illingworth, the new president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, is enough to make the stoutest heart sink. ...

Collapse of Tourism, Business Travel Topples London Hotels' Profits.
July 9, 2003... Byline: Jim Armitage Jul. 9--The collapse in tourism and business travelers has sent London toppling to third place in the European rankings of hotel performance, with profitability sliding to its lowest since 1996, it emerged today. ...

Economists Expect Freeze on Rates as New Bank of England Head Takes Charge.
July 9, 2003... Byline: Jane Padgham Jul. 9--Mervyn King, the Bank of England's new Governor, was today presiding over his first meeting as chairman of the monetary policy committee, with interest rates widely tipped to be left on hold for the fifth month...

Triple Whammy Boosts Bank of England Rate Cut Chances.
July 9, 2003... Jul. 9--A triple whammy of grim economic news today dramatically slashed the odds on a cut in interest rates tomorrow. Britain's trade gap has ballooned unexpectedly, investment in the UK by overseas firms has fallen and the number of...

Investors Screaming for a Slice of Yellow Pages Publisher Yell.
July 9, 2003... Byline: Michael Clark Jul. 9--City investors look poised to give Yellow Pages publisher Yell a warm welcome at tomorrow's stock market debut. Early indications point to the biggest float in more than two years being priced at the top...

Evening Standard, London, Business Briefs Column.
July 9, 2003... Jul. 9--BAT AND REYNOLDS IN US MERGER TALKS: British American Tobacco and R J Reynolds, maker of Camel and Winston cigarettes, have held talks about merging their US operations, the Wall Street Journal reported. However, a merger would have 32...

Smirnoff's Drop in Sales Waters Down Diageo's Operating Profits.
July 9, 2003... Byline: Jim Armitage Jul. 9--Diageo today delivered a mixed trading statement after suffering further sales declines in its important Smirnoff Ice ready-to-drink brands. Overall, the group said operating profits growth for the full...

Refit of Iceland Food Chain Boosts Britain's Big Food Group.
July 9, 2003... Byline: Fiona Walsh Jul. 9--Sales remain on the slide at Big Food group, although the rate of decline is slowing and refitted stores are showing double-digit gains. The group, which owns the Booker cash and carry and Iceland frozen...

Finance Chief Quits British Insurance Firm Aviva for 'Life Change'.
July 9, 2003... Byline: Robert Lea Jul. 9--One of the most lucrative finance directorships in the City came up for grabs today after Aviva's Mike Biggs said he was quitting his UKpound 1 million-a-year job. His departure comes just weeks after a...

Founder Leaves British Insurance Software Company TIG.
July 9, 2003... Byline: Nick Goodway Jul. 9--Software wizard Rob Terry, once worth more than UKpound 335 million, is leaving the insurance software business he founded six years ago with a UKpound 437,500 pay-off. The 34-year-old's remaining 16.6...

British Office Renting Firm Tackles Share Price Woe.
July 9, 2003... Jul. 9--Directors of troubled office renting firm Regus plan to stop shorting of its shares by making further representations to the Financial Services Authority and seeking advice from NM Rothschild and Merrill Lynch, writes Malcolm Withers....

Rolls-Royce Chief Executive Volunteers to Cut His Notice Period.
July 9, 2003... Jul. 9--Rolls-Royce chief executive Sir John Rose has volunteered to cut his notice period from two years to one without compensation. This brings him into line with City best practice and could cost him UKpound 1 million if he loses his job....

US Dealer Fined for Art Tax Dodge.
July 9, 2003... Jul. 9--A global crack-down on suspected tax evasion in the rarified world of fine art and antiques has led to the conviction of one of the world's leading antique silver dealers. The up-market New York gallery SJ Shrubsole has been fined...

British Sandwich Chain Takes on Mobile Vendors.
July 9, 2003... Byline: Jonathan Prynn Jul. 9--The legions of sandwich vendors who invade offices and industrial parks every weekday lunchtime are to face competition from a big player for the first time. Sandwich chain Benjys is to launch this autumn...

British Venture Capitalist 3i Joins Big Issue Club for UKpound 380 Million.
July 9, 2003... Byline: Jim Armitage Jul. 9--Venture capitalist 3i today launched a UKpound 380 million convertible bond issue, making it the fourth major issuer of exchangeable debt in recent weeks. The launch follows big convertible issues from...

London Airports Revival Brings Cheer for U.K. Operator BAA.
July 10, 2003... Byline: Robert Lea Jul. 10--London's airports are slowly getting busier again as the number of passengers using the capital's three main hubs gradually gets back to pre-9.11 levels. Figures released by BAA today show that 10.13 million...

Evening Standard, London, Asian Markets Column.
July 10, 2003... Byline: Bill Condie Jul. 10--The survival of Qantas has been publicly questioned by chief executive Geoff Dixon in the face of rising labour costs, competition at home from Richard Branson's Virgin Blue and abroad from US airlines...