Nils Pratley
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/ 24 March 2006

FTSE hits landmark 6 000

The FTSE 100 (the Financial Times/London Stock Exchange list of the top 100 companies) spent much of last week above 6 000 points for the first time since March 8 2001, achieving the latest landmark in one of the most remarkable post-war stock market recoveries. It didn’t quite last — the closing level was 5 999,4.

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/ 22 July 2005

Marriage for ‘beauty not money’

SABMiller has won its fight to buy Bavaria, a Colombian-based brewer regarded as the last major prize in the global beer industry’s pursuit of growth in South America. SAB’s shares moved sharply higher as investors applauded an apparent bargain price of ,8-billion, almost -billion below some market estimates of Bavaria’s value.

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/ 18 February 2005

Have the fans met their match?

His 60-year career has spanned fast food and nursing homes, and involved some bizarre court cases. He has generally adopted a ”never explain” approach to the many controversies he has provoked during his climb to the top. Now Malcolm Glazer is determined to buy Manchester United soccer club — regardless of what the fans think.

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/ 14 February 2005

Outcry over Shell’s record profit

Oil giant Shell is fighting calls for a windfall tax after it recorded the biggest profits by a British company to date. The £9,4-billion earned in 2004 from oil and gas — £1-million an hour and equal to nearly 1% of the United Kingdom’s gross domestic product — came after the prices of UK domestic gas, electricity and petrol soared. Banking group HSBC is predicted to match Shell’s profits.

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/ 11 February 2005

Militant fans in new threat to Glazer

A militant group of Manchester United fans this week threatened a renewed and potentially more violent phase of its campaign to keep Malcolm Glazer from taking control of the club. The group calls itself the Manchester Education Committee and has been responsible for ”direct action” against those it suspects of involvement in any takeover.