Dec. 9–TYCO BUSINESS LANDS $4 BILLION CONTRACT WITH US AIR FORCE: A company owned by Tyco International has won a contract worth up to $4 billion (UKpound 2.3 billion) for environmental work at USAir Force bases worldwide. The work, awarded to Tyco’s Earth Technical arm, is part of the USAF’s environmental restoration and construction programme.
CONGRESS BACKING JAIL TERM FOR PORN SPAMMERS: The US Congress has approved a bill outlawing some forms of junk email and creating a do not spam registry. It proposes jail and fines for marketers who flood in-boxes with pornography and get-rich-quick schemes. The Bill needs White House approval, expected by the year-end.
OPEC MULLS SWITCH TO EURO PRICING AFTER DOLLAR DROP: Oil cartel Opec may discuss trading oil in euros or a basket of currencies rather than the dollar because of concerns over the greenback’s slide. Last week Saudi Arabia, a key Opec producer, said it was seeking a higher oil price to offset the effect of the dollar’s fall.
GO-AHEAD ON RIGHT TRACK FOR EARNINGS ACCELERATION: A subsidy-fuelled boom on London buses and better performance deals on its Thameslink and South Central rail franchises will see Go-Ahead produce better than expected results for the half-year to the end of this month. It is “ahead of budget”, despite problems with its airport handling business Aviance.
US REVIVAL PROMISES NEW DRIVE FOR FIRST TECHNOLOGY: First Technology, the electronics group best known for making crash-test dummies, today forecast stronger second-half sales of its in-car sensor systems after signs of a US recovery. Profits in the half-year to October fell UKpound 1 million to UKpound 11.4 million on sales of UKpound 58.3 million, down nearly 10 percent.
PHYTOPHARM TRIMS DOWN POTENTIAL DRUG PARTNERS: The number of international firms wanting to partner Phytopharm in the development of obesity drug P57 has been cut to four. Developed from a large, cucumber-type plant in South Africa that suppresses appetite, P57 is seen as a potential ingredient for slimming meals.
TRADER TALK: Hedge fund firm Lansdowne Partners, an active trader recently in Manchester United shares, has surfaced with a 3.3 percent holding in Punch Taverns following its UKpound 1.2 million purchase of Pubmaster. The Pubmaster deal made Punch Britain’s biggest pubs operator with 7600 outlets. The integration of the two businesses should result in cost savings of UKpound 10 million a year. Citywire.co.uk
BOND WATCH: Lehman Brothers Holdings has launched a 25 billion yen (UKpound 135 million) Samurai bond with a coupon of 0.94 percent, the lead manager, the Tokyo branch of Lehman Brothers Securities, said. The yen-denominated bond will mature on 19 December 2008, according to the bank.
SPEAKING OUT: When I’m asked to do a report by the Prime Minister or someone, I never listen too slavishly.
–Sir John Egan, the Government s Thames Gateway adviser and president of the CBI
IN PROSPECT: Hospital software group iSoft’s half-year figures, due out tomorrow, have been overshadowed by last week’s news that its planned UKpound 700 million merger with Torex has been sent back to the Office of Fair Trading for further consideration. That has raised concerns that the merger could be delayed and hurt the company’s ability to get the contracts it expects.
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UKpound preceding a numeral refers to the United Kingdom’s pound sterling. (c) 2003, Evening Standard, London. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.
TYC, FRS, LEH,
