Barclays to sell 22% Africa division stake worth $2 billion
Businessam Staff
June 1, 2017
Barclays Plc said it will sell a further 22 percent stake in its South African unit, a holding worth about $2 billion at current prices, as part of the U.K. bank’s plan to shrink its operations and bolster capital strength. The London-based lender is offering about 187 million shares of Barclays Africa Group Ltd. in an […]
Murdoch brothers hold talks with Ofcom over £11.7bn Sky takeover
Businessam StaffJune 1, 2017
The Murdoch brothers have held secret talks with Ofcom in a bid to persuade the regulator to wave through 21st Century Fox’s planned £11.7bn takeover of Sky. It is understood that Sharon White, chief executive of Ofcom, has met James and Lachlan Murdoch in London in the last week to discuss the proposed deal. Rupert […]
Spar CEO sees South African politics hurting consumer confidence
Businessam StaffJune 1, 2017
Spar Group Ltd. said the firing of South African Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan and subsequent credit rating downgrades had caused a “massive loss of confidence” among shoppers already battling weak economic growth. While there has yet to be a “huge impact” on trading at the Durban-based food and liquor retailer, the decision by President Jacob […]
South Africa removes Eskom CEO Molefe few days after rehire
Businessam StaffJune 1, 2017
South Africa will remove Brian Molefe as chief executive officer of Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. less than three weeks after his controversial return to the state power utility, Bloomberg reports. Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown will appoint an acting CEO within 48 hours, after a committee of cabinet ministers asked by President Jacob Zuma to review […]
BA boss given vote of confidence by Willie Walsh as full details of IT meltdown revealed
Businessam StaffMay 31, 2017
Willie Walsh has given his public backing to British Airways chief Alex Cruz as key details into the investigation of what went wrong with the airline’s computer servers over the bank holiday weekend can be revealed for the first time. In his first intervention since the crisis began on Saturday morning, it can be disclosed […]
British Airways left to count cost of IT choas, as Ryanair saw strong bookings over the weekend
Businessam StaffMay 30, 2017
Shares in the parent company of British Airways fell on Tuesday after a huge IT failure left 75,000 passengers stranded over a holiday weekend, dealing a major blow to an airline that once marketed itself as “the world’s favorite”. The British flag carrier had to cancel all flights from London’s Heathrow, Europe’s busiest airport, and […]
BA boss ’emails staff to ask them not to speak about catastrophic computer failure’
Businessam StaffMay 30, 2017
The boss of British Airways (BA) has reportedly tried to stop staff commenting on the computer system failure that resulted in flights being cancelled from Gatwick and Heathrow. Alex Cruz, chief executive and chairman of British Airways, apparently emailed members of staff urging them not to comment on the meltdown which caused severe disruption to […]
South Africa Famous Brands scraps dividend as acquisitions boost debt
Businessam StaffMay 29, 2017
Famous Brands, South African food services franchising company has scrapped its dividend on Monday for the first time in 13 years seeking to conserve capital after a series of acquisitions boosted its debt, Reuters reports. Chief Executive Darren Hele said Famous Brands abandoned the payout for the year which ended in February because the group’s […]
Ford’s changes at the top aimed at faster decision-making
Businessam StaffMay 29, 2017
Few days back, Jim Hackett, relatively newcomer to the auto industry replaced veteran Mark Fields as Ford Motor Co. CEO, and Ford said it is taking the decision so as to speed up decision-making and reorient toward the future, Associated Press reports. Ford is highly profitable, thanks to strong sales of pickups and SUVs. But last year’s profit of […]
Beijing bling: Hyundai plots China branding reboot after missile row
Businessam StaffMay 28, 2017
Bruised by anti-Korean sentiment in its biggest market and losing ground to local automakers, Hyundai Motor (005380.KS) will open its first Chinese brand store, and may locally assemble its premium Genesis cars and accelerate the launch of a sport-utility vehicle (SUV), people familiar with the plans said. The measures are aimed at rebooting the South […]