DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ UK's Domino's Pizza Group names new CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

July 13 (Reuters) - Domino's Pizza Group (DOM.L) said on Thursday Andrew Rennie, who has served as the Europe chief for a major franchise operator of the pizza chain, will join the UK firm in August as its chief executive. Rennie will take over from Elias Diaz Sese, who has been serving as Domino's Pizza Group's (DPG) interim CEO since October 2022. The group owns, operates and franchises Domino's stores in the UK and Ireland. Rennie has held several roles at Domino's Pizza Enterprises in over two decades, including being CEO of its European business from 2014 to 2020. The Sydney-listed company holds exclusive master franchise rights for the Domino's brand across 12 markets including Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, France, The Netherlands, Germany and Luxembourg.

Persons: Andrew Rennie, Rennie, Elias Diaz Sese, Sese, DPG, Chandini, Nivedita Organizations: Ireland, Pizza Enterprises, Thomson Locations: Europe, Sydney, Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, France, The Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, Bengaluru

☆ Lazard, facing a dealmaking drought, is on a mission to boost its money management business. It won't be easy.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Rebecca Ungarino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

The group extends guidance on geopolitical matters to clients as well as colleagues, like the asset management arm's sprawling salesforce. The firm is making a series of changes to ramp up its asset management business. Lazard has had an asset management business for decades, but it's a business that's finding new relevance on Wall Street. Incoming Lazard CEO Peter Orszag, pictured here in May, has made improving the asset management business a priority. "When it comes to the asset management business, the picture is probably more blurry," said Richard Bruyère, managing partner of the Paris-based asset management advisory firm Indefi.

Persons: Lazard, Evan Russo, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Peter Orszag, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, it's, Russo, Orszag, Ray McGuire, Jennifer Ryan, Goldman Sachs, Brennan Hawken, Richard Bruyère, Bruyère, Ryan, Hartley, Morgan Stanley, Janus Henderson, Ashmore, Devin Ryan, AllianceBernstein, Larry Cohen, " Russo, Peter Organizations: Lazard, BlackRock, Citi, New York, North, Incoming Lazard, REUTERS, UBS, Investors, Firms, Virtus, Liontrust, Bank's JMP Securities Locations: Russia, New York, Washington, North America, Paris, Taft, Asia

☆ Battling Brexit, some British firms turn to invest in Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Andy Bruce | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

German data show British firms opened 170 foreign direct investment projects in Europe's biggest economy last year as companies sought a foothold in the bloc's single market. That's a far cry from the 50 enquiries from British firms - rather than projects committed - recorded by German Trade & Invest in 2015, the year before the Brexit referendum. Pro-Brexit economists say such data ignore the fact British corporate investment boomed in the years before mid-2016, and it was bound to slow. British firms are also waiting to hear how - or even if - London intends to compete with the enormous green energy and tech subsidies pitched by the United States and EU. At Farrat, the effects of Brexit are insidious, running beyond decisions over investments, said Farrell, describing a sense of unease felt towards British firms from potential foreign clients, worn down by years of political turmoil"People are nervous.

Persons: Brexit, Oliver Farrell, Andy Burnham, Burnham, it's, capitalising, Steve Connor, Connor, Jeremy Hunt, Farrell, Dave, Subrah Krishnan Harihara, Andy Bruce, William Schomberg, David Clarke Organizations: European Union, Reuters, German Trade, Invest, Organisation for Economic Co, Development, Reuters Graphics, Labour Party, EU, Creative Concern, European Commission, Manchester Chambers of Commerce, Thomson Locations: MANCHESTER, England, Britain, Manchester, Germany, English, Europe's, Netherlands, France, United States, England's, London, Birmingham, Greater Manchester, Farrat, EU, Warwick, West Midlands

☆ Activist Legion Partners spots two possible paths to create value at Clear Channel Outdoor
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( Kenneth Squire | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Business: Clear Channel Outdoor is an out-of-home advertising company that offers a variety of advertising services, including through billboards, street furniture displays, transit displays and airport displays. Activist Commentary: Legion is an activist investor whose managing directors are Chris Kiper, previously of Shamrock Activist Value Fund, and Ted White, previously of European activist fund Knight Vinke. Clear Channel effectively has two business lines – Americas and Europe, each with very different business models and valuations. Moreover, since this strategic review of Europe began in December 2021, Clear Channel has announced the sales of businesses in Italy, Spain and Switzerland. CCO first announced its strategic review of the European business in December 2021 and very little has come to fruition.

Persons: Chris Kiper, Ted White, Knight Vinke, Legion, CCO, CCO's underperformance, Ken Squire Organizations: Clear, Value Fund, Legion Partners, Europe, Legion, 13D Locations: U.S, Europe, Americas, iHeartMedia, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, America

Banks typically provide research to clients as part of a broader offering of services, but that changed when the European Union introduced the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) II laws in 2018 to improve transparency. "It took about a year for us to become compliant to MiFID II laws -- it was a long, intense process," said Candace Browning, head of BofA Global Research. U.S. financial firms were initially given an exemption by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which expires on July 3. "Companies continue to face challenges complying with the MiFID II unbundling requirement and U.S. law," said Joe Corcoran, SIFMA's managing director and associate general counsel for capital markets. 'EXPENSIVE AND COMPLICATED' In Europe, asset managers under MiFID II are not allowed to pay for research through broker commissions on trading -- instead, investors are billed separately by banks for research.

Persons: Banks, Candace Browning, Joe Corcoran, SIFMA's, SIFMA, MiFID, Michael Eastwood, Jefferies, Jesse Forster, BofA, salespeople, Browning, Forster, Russell Sacks, Nupur Anand, Lananh Nguyen, Deepa Babington Organizations: YORK, Bank of America Corp, Jefferies Financial, European Union, Financial, BofA Global, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Securities Industry, Financial Markets Association, SEC, Jefferies, Coalition, King, Spalding, Thomson Locations: Europe, U.S, Greenwich, Coalition Greenwich, New York

SummarySummary Companies STOXX 600 off 0.1%Defence firms fall after failed Russian mutinyHealthcare sector drags STOXX 600German business morale weakens againJune 26 (Reuters) - European shares inched lower on Monday, led by healthcare, while defence stocks fell after an aborted weekend mutiny in Russia. The pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) slipped 0.1% as of 1600 GMT, extending losses for its sixth straight session. Shares of major European defence firms Leonardo SpA (LDOF.MI), Saab AB (SAABb.ST) and Rheinmetall AG (RHMG.DE) each dropped more than 4%, weighing on the European aerospace and defence sub-index (.SXPARO) which fell 0.9%. "It's too early to price something into the market, that's why the really limited move on defence stocks." The healthcare index (.SXDP) fell 1.1% and was a big drag on the STOXX 600 index, which has come under pressure on concerns about an economic slowdown from a potentially longer-than-expected global interest rate hiking cycle.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Leonardo, Shanti Kelemen, It's, Germany's DAX, Aston Martin, Amruta Khandekar, Varun H, Dhanya Ann Thoppil, Richard Chang Organizations: Wagner Group, Leonardo SpA, Saab AB, Rheinmetall AG, G Wealth, Energy, Siemens Energy, Lucid, Cineworld, SBB, Thomson Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Europe's, British, Swedish

☆ Chinese economic planner woos European giants Airbus, BMW despite unresolved tensions over Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The Chinese planner said it supports domestic airlines cooperating with Airbus according to their needs. He also witnessed the signing of the agreements between the NDRC and the European companies separately in Berlin and Paris, according to the Chinese planner. Relations are also strained from recent moves by European Union regulators and governments to limit China’s access to sensitive technology. In March, the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen called on Europe to reassess its diplomatic and economic relations with China. “Germany is committed to actively broadening our economic relations with Asia and beyond,” Scholz said at a joint press conference with Li, according to French news agency AFP.

Persons: Guillaume Faury, Zheng Shanjie, Li Qiang, Li, Ursula von der Leyen, Olaf Scholz, ” Scholz, China’s Sinochem Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Moscow, Airbus, BMW, Mercedes, Benz, Volkswagen, Siemens, BASF, National Development, Reform Commission, Union, ASML, European, AFP Locations: Hong Kong, China, Ukraine, Paris, Tianjin, Europe, European, Berlin, Beijing, Russia, United States, Netherlands, Germany, Asia, Italy

☆ European business activity slows in June as higher interest rates begin to bite
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Silvia Amaro | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Business activity growth in Europe slowed in June, pointing to a difficult end to the second quarter, according to preliminary data Friday. Speaking to CNBC's Street Signs Europe, Chris Williamson, chief business economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, described the numbers as "worrying." "Higher interest rates, the rise in the cost of living, all beginning to take their toll," he said. The European Central Bank has been increasing interest rates consistently for the past 12 months in an effort to bring down inflation. Higher rates can lead to higher costs for companies across the bloc, however, and so often become a drag on output.

Persons: Chris Williamson Organizations: P, P Global, P Global Market Intelligence, European Central Bank Locations: Europe

☆ Intelsat ends merger talks with rival satellite communications giant SES
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Michael Sheetz | In Michaeljsheetz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

U.S. satellite communications giant Intelsat walked away from merger discussions with Luxembourg-based competitor SES on Wednesday, CNBC confirmed. Intelsat ended the discussions after differences arose with SES over business priorities, a person familiar with the situation told CNBC. It also wasn't clear whether the merger would lead to more value creation compared with Intelsat continuing on its own, the person said. The collapse of the merger talks comes shortly after SES announced CEO Steve Collar would step down at the end of this month. The move came as a surprise within the space industry, as Collar's career at SES spans more than 20 years.

Persons: Elon Musk's, Steve Collar Organizations: Intelsat, SES, Wednesday, CNBC, Elon, Elon Musk's SpaceX, Bloomberg Locations: Luxembourg, U.S

☆ Business in China is getting harder for European companies despite the end of Covid controls
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

BEIJING – European businesses in China are finding it harder to operate in the country, even after it has re-opened from Covid, the EU Chamber of Commerce in China found in its latest member survey, released Wednesday. Mainland China ended its stringent Covid controls in December, and authorities pledged to support more business travel in and out of the country. "Zero-Covid has ended, but other headwinds will need to be addressed if China is to regain its attractiveness," the Chamber's report said. While the survey noted part of those were due to Covid controls, the outlook remains grim. There's "no expectation that the regulatory environment is really going to improve over the next five years," Jens Eskelund, president of the EU Chamber of Commerce in China, told reporters in a briefing.

Persons: Ole Kaällenius, Zhimin Qian, Li Qiang, Olaf Scholz, Covid, Jens Eskelund Organizations: State Power Investment Corporation, EU Chamber of Commerce Locations: People's Republic of China, BEIJING, China, Covid, Mainland China

☆ Generali’s pounce may win over in-house sceptics
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The 29 billion euro Italian insurer on Thursday agreed to purchase Liberty Seguros, a group of European businesses, from U.S. insurer Liberty Mutual for 2.3 billion euros in cash. The Italian insurer’s largest acquisition since 2013 nearly exhausts its M&A firepower, which the group had assessed at between 2.5 billion euros and 3 billion euros. At 2.3 billion euros, or nearly two times its 1.2 billion euros of annual revenue, Liberty Seguros’ price tag does not look cheap. But the real price falls to 1.8 billion euros after factoring in around 500 million euros of cash expected from a sale of Brazilian assets announced earlier this year. Assuming three-quarters of these are cost cuts, they may be worth around 800 million euros once taxed at 25% and capitalised.

Persons: Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone, Philippe Donnet, Generali, Lisa Jucca, Pierre Briancon, Oliver Taslic Organizations: MILAN, Reuters, Liberty, Liberty Mutual, Axa, Allianz, Twitter, Thomson Locations: U.S, Italian, Iberia, Spain, Portugal, Europe, Cava

[1/2] A Shell logo is pictured during the European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (EBACE) in Geneva, Switzerland, May 23, 2022. His more cautious approach to the energy transition marks a change in tack from his predecessor Ben van Beurden who introduced the carbon reduction targets and the energy transition strategy. It is also exiting its European power retail businesses, which were seen only a few years ago as key to its energy transition. At the same time, Shell reported record profits of $40 billion last year on the back of strong oil and gas prices. Sawan previously flagged that the 2021 target to cut oil output by 20% the end of the decade was under review.

Persons: Denis Balibouse, Sawan, Wael Sawan's, Ben van Beurden, Shell, Bernard Looney, Lucas Herrmann, Herrmann, Ron Bousso, Elaine Hardcastle Organizations: European Business Aviation Convention, REUTERS, Shell, LONDON, BP, Reuters Graphics Reuters, U.S, Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Investors, Thomson Locations: Geneva, Switzerland, New York, Shell, Lebanese, Namibia, London

The European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (EBACE), hosted in Geneva, kicks off on Tuesday and brings together everyone from brokers, planemakers to engine producers. CO2 emissions from private jets in Europe grew by 31% between 2005 and 2019, according to environmental group Transport and Environment. Protesters are expected to gather on Tuesday outside the conference location in Geneva to highlight the rising number of private jet flights amidst a worsening global climate crisis. "The big innovations are usually deployed first in our industry," Kok said. Business jet flights have dropped in Europe by around 6% compared with the same time in 2022, WINGX data showed.

Jefferies says specialty plumbing and appliances distributor Ferguson is a high-quality business "poised to take [market] share." Its new price target of $181 implies shares rallying 28% from Monday's close. "FERG is uniquely positioned to service compared to smaller competitors due to its scale & breadth of products," analyst Philip Ng wrote in a Tuesday note. "FERG should be resilient in a downturn, driven by its pricing power, high variable cost structure and capital light model. FERG's pricing power & limited exposure to commodity products drive stable gross margins through the cycle."

May 2 (Reuters) - Tinder owner Match Group (MTCH.O) has said it will quit Russia by June 30, citing the need to protect human rights, one of many Western firms to leave since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine last year. "We are committed to protecting human rights," Match said in an annual impact report published on Monday. "Our brands are taking steps to restrict access to their services in Russia and will complete their withdrawal from the Russian market by June 30, 2023." Match shareholder Friends Fiduciary Corp said Match had set an example for others to follow in tying its decision to the human rights risks faced by the Ukrainian people. Moscow denies committing war crimes including forced deportations of children, and says the ICC decision is meaningless as Russia is not a member.

☆ Deutsche Bank shrugs off basket-case mantle
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Some alighted on Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE), the erstwhile whipping boy of European banking. True, the bank’s total deposits fell by 29 billion euros, or roughly 5%, between Dec. 31 and March 31. In Banco Santander’s (SAN.MC) European business, customer deposits also fell roughly 5% over the same period. Meanwhile, three-quarters of corporate banking deposits either have a fixed term or are used as part of the customers’ operations, making them stickier. Deutsche, previously the basket-case of European banking, was always a likely target for investors hunting for the next weak link.

☆ Global Economy Gets Boost but Inflation Worries Linger
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Paul Hannon | Harriet Torry | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Surveys suggest the European Central Bank is on course to raise its key interest rate in May. Photo: KAI PFAFFENBACH/REUTERSU.S. and European business activity rose in April at the fastest pace in about a year, a boost for the global economy but a potentially complicating factor for central banks working to reduce high inflation. Demand for services drove the growth, according to surveys by data firm S&P Global covering U.S., eurozone and U.K. businesses. That kept pressure on price increases in regions where inflation last year reached its highest level in decades.

☆ Morning Bid: April boomlet mocks recession script
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

A look at the day ahead in U.S. and global markets from Mike DolanThe signal is still lost in an awful lot of noise. With next week's Big Tech earnings reports hoving into view, the overall U.S. corporate healthcheck remains pretty mixed. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the overall global stock market direction remains equivocal. Although Asia bourses had initially followed Wall St's Thursday swoon, European indexes and S&P500 futures were little changed on Friday. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Why a European stock index is crushing its US peers
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Julia Horowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

By comparison, the Dow Jones Industrial Average in the United States has climbed 2%. Those “growth” stocks gave investors a stake in firms that were on track to expand their businesses quickly and generate hefty returns. Now, investors are more drawn to “value” stocks: companies thought to be trading at a discount based on their financial performance. That’s been a “near-perfect combination” for European stocks to beat their US peers, he added. Economists at the Fed predict the United States will fall into a “mild” recession as a result of the recent banking crisis.

NEW DELHI/LONDON, April 6 (Reuters) - Global fuel suppliers are turning to longer and costlier routes that produce more carbon emissions to move their diesel and other products as Western restrictions on Russian cargoes have reshuffled global energy shipping patterns. The ban comes on top of a halt late last year on Russian crude sales into the bloc as well as Western price caps. Also in March, Russian clean products shipped to Togo reached 973 million MT-NM, up from zero in November. Conversely, Russian exports to the Netherlands dropped to 238,200 tonnes in February from 1.15 million tonnes in September. Those longer distances are being done at higher costs for Russian products than for typical shipments from Europe.

☆ Exclusive: EU Chips Act likely to get green light on April 18 -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The European Commission announced the Chips Act last year in a bid to cut EU reliance on U.S. and Asian semiconductors following global supply chain problems that hurt European businesses from carmakers to manufacturers. EU countries and lawmakers will meet at the European Parliament's monthly session in Strasbourg on April 18 to negotiate details of funding for the Act and will likely clinch a deal, the people said. Providing funding to the entire value chain also addresses complaints from the smaller EU countries about being left out after Intel (INTC.O), attracted by the Chips Act, picked Germany for its new mega chip manufacturing complex. Franco-Italian company STMicroelectronics has also teamed up with GlobalFoundries (GFS.O) to build a 6.7 billion euro chip factory in France, drawing on funding from the government. ($1 = 0.9163 euros)Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Jan Harvey, Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Exclusive: EU likely to clinch deal on Chips Act on April 18 - sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRUSSELS, April 5 (Reuters) - EU countries and lawmakers are likely to clinch a deal on a multi-billion euro plan to boost the bloc's semiconductor industry on April 18, sources with direct knowledge of the matter said on Wednesday. The European Commission announced the Chips Act last year in a bid to cut EU reliance on U.S. and Asian semiconductors following global supply chain problems that hurt European businesses from carmakers to manufacturers. The countries and lawmakers will meet at the European Parliament's monthly session in Strasbourg on April 18 to negotiate details of funding for the act, the people said. Discussions have to date focused on a 400-million-euro ($438 million) shortfall, but the EU executive has managed to come up with the bulk of the funds, they said. ($1 = 0.9132 euros)Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Jan HarveyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Dutch online bank Bunq applies for U.S. banking licence
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

AMSTERDAM, April 4 (Reuters) - Bunq BV, a prominent European online banking start-up, formally filed for a banking licence with U.S. regulators on Tuesday, the company's CEO told Reuters in an interview. Bunq raised $228 million at a $1.9 billion valuation in 2021. Bunq, which competes with Britain's Revolut and Germany's N26, said that as of March 14, it had deposits of around 2.3 billion euros, up 27% from 1.8 billion euros at the end of 2023. Bunq offers savers in its native Netherlands 1.56% interest on deposits, a percentage point above rates offered by the three big banks that dominate Dutch banking, ING, ABN Amro and Rabobank. Bunq makes some mortgage loans but keeps more than half of its reserves at the European Central Bank's deposit facility, which Niknam said should reassure depositors.

☆ Goldman sees a 'meaningful ramp-up' in solar ahead and gives the best ways to play it
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The Inflation Reduction Act's tax credits will likely prompt surging demand for solar power in the U.S., according to Goldman Sachs. The law included a 30% credit toward the installation of solar panels or other equipment that harnesses renewable energy. Because of this, he recommends solar stocks that broadly play to supply chain diversification and onshoring trends while also having strong business fundamentals. First Solar , meanwhile, should specifically benefit from the push to expand domestic renewable energy capacity, Singer said. While the stock has surged more than 40% since 2023 began, analysts expect shares to slip 1.3% over the next year.

☆ How European Businesses Survived the Ukraine War and Last Year’s Energy Shock
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( Tom Fairless | Photographs Patricia Kuhfuss For The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Claas, a manufacturer of agricultural machinery, increased output at its main German factory by 30% last year. HARSEWINKEL, Germany—When Russia invaded Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin was counting on soaring energy prices and falling confidence to sink European companies, undermining the West’s support for Kyiv. One year on, many European companies have overcome the blow after slashing energy use and pivoting to a friendly and booming U.S. market. Such resilience has helped shore up political and popular support in Europe for Ukraine.

Search resuls for: "European Business"

25 mentions found