Charter Bids $62bn For Time Warner Cable

Cable TV operator Charter Communications is planning to go direct to shareholders of Time Warner Cable in a bid to buy its larger rival in a deal worth over $62bn (£38bn), when debt is included.

The company said it was prepared to make an offer to investors after determining there was "no genuine intent" from Time Warner Cable's management to engage in merger talks.

Charter Communications said it has made repeated overtures to Time Warner for more than six months and had previously planned an offer below $135 per share, including $83-per-share in cash.

That values Time Warner at up to $38bn but the company had responded that the sum undervalued its business, Charter said.

Its statement said: "Time Warner Cable's response led Charter to determine there is no genuine intent from Time Warner Cable's management and Board of Directors to engage in a merger agreement, and that it is prudent to bring the matter to shareholders directly." 

Charter said in a letter to Time Warner Cable that the company had unrealistic price expectations and Goldman Sachs and Liontree Advisors were lead advisers on its bid.

Time Warner shares were up slightly from their closing price to $134.60 in after-hours market trades.

US cable television and internet titan Comcast is also seen as potential suitor of Time Warner Cable, which has been losing TV customers in a competitive US market.

A tie-up with Charter would create the third-largest pay TV operator.

:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.

14.47 | 0 komentar | Read More

Lidl To Remove Sweets From Checkouts

By Poppy Trowbridge, Consumer Affairs Correspondent

I understand that Lidl will announce plans to remove all chocolate and sweets from the checkout queues in their supermarkets later this week.

The move is likely to be welcomed by consumer groups and parents alike, in the face of growing concerns about childhood obesity on the rise in the UK.

According to Sky sources, the discount retailer has been in consultation with customers for several months and the move is in response to preferences expressed by shoppers.

Parents face 'pester power' at the till while waiting with their children to pay for groceries.

Today, the National Obesity Forum said the UK is in danger of surpassing predictions of a 2007 report which estimated that 50% of the nation would be obese by 2050.

Lidl's action will likely increase the pressure on other supermarkets to take more definitive action.

All of the major supermarkets have committed to removing artificial 'trans fats' from their products.

But according to a Which? report published in December 2012, while Sainsburys and Tesco have banned sweets from supermarket checkouts, the policy does not apply to their smaller convenience stores.

Asda, Iceland and Morrisons all aim to 'limit' the sale of sugary treats near checkouts, but do not impose a blank ban like the one Lidl is proposing.

Waitrose does not have any policy in place on sweets at the checkout.

Last year, Lidl UK increased the number of 'healthy tills' in stores nationwide to 1,200.

The tills replaced 'treat' items such as chocolate with products of a higher nutritional value such as multivitamin juice and fresh fruit, as part of a healthy initiative to promote fresh fruit and vegetables to customers.

:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.

14.47 | 0 komentar | Read More

Argos Owner Set To Name Walden As New Boss

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

The owner of Argos is close to naming the chain's boss as its new group chief executive, a move that will also hand him oversight of the DIY retailer Homebase.

Sky News understands that Home Retail Group is poised to end a four-month search for a successor to Terry Duddy, the long-serving executive who announced last autumn that he would step down this year.

Insiders said on Monday that John Walden, who joined Argos as managing director nearly two years ago, was the board's preferred candidate to take the helm. An announcement could be made alongside Home Retail's Christmas trading update on Thursday, they said.

Mr Walden joined Argos as the company's managing director in February 2012

Argos is understood to have seen reasonable growth in like-for-like sales during the crucial festive period despite experiencing some problems with its website caused by an upgrade undertaken in mid-December, according to one insider.

If he does get the nod for the top job, it would reflect early signs of success in Mr Walden's efforts to reinvigorate Argos, the catalogue chain which has struggled in the face of competition from Amazon and other Internet-based retailers.

Last autumn, Home Retail announced the launch of a trial with eBay, the online auctioneer, that involves 150 Argos shops being used as collection points for selected eBay merchants.

Mr Walden previously worked at BestBuy, the US electrical goods group, and Sears. His nomination as group chief executive remains subject to final board approval and could be delayed beyond this week, another source said.

A Home Retail spokesman declined to comment.

Argos's Christmas sales performance is likely to mark it out as one of the high street's more successful general merchandise retailers during the period.

Major losers included Debenhams, which on Monday saw nearly 5% of its shares acquired by Sports Direct International, the chain led by Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley.

:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.

14.47 | 0 komentar | Read More

Wall Street Giants To Aid £1bn Travelex Sale

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

The foreign currency provider Travelex has enlisted a pair of Wall Street titans to aid a plan that will involve a £1bn sale or flotation during 2014.

Sky News understands that Travelex has drafted in Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan to work on a deal that could value the stake held by the company's founder, Lloyd Dorfman, at £300m or more.

While a transaction is not imminent, insiders said that the appointment of the two investment banks was a signal that one was likely this year.

Apax Partners, the private equity group, has owned a controlling stake in Travelex since 2005 and is keen to offload its stake, on which it will augment an already handsome profit.

City sources said that JP Morgan was focusing on an initial public offering that would see Travelex make its stock market debut, while Goldman Sachs has been asked to field approaches from potential buyers of the company in addition to assisting with a flotation.

Rothschild was brought in last autumn to help evaluate options for the business.

A stock market listing, which would probably see Travelex join the FTSE-250 index of the public companies ranked between 101 and 350 by size on the London markets, remains the company's preferred route, the sources added.

Travelex was set up in 1976 by Mr Dorfman, who remains its chairman and second-largest shareholder. Mr Dorfman is one of Britain's most successful entrepreneurs, and is thought likely to remain on the board if it decides to pursue a listing.

Travelex has been reshaped since Peter Jackson, its chief executive, was recruited from Lloyds Banking Group in 2010, with the sale of its card management and global payments operations for an aggregate total of nearly £1bn.

Mr Jackson said last year that trading during the crucial summer period had been strong, and the business is understood to have continued to perform well since then.

A Travelex spokesman declined to comment.

:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.

14.47 | 0 komentar | Read More

Snow-Hit Sheep Farmers Fear Worse Is To Come

By Becky Johnson, North of England Correspondent

Farmers will have to prepare for the impact of more extreme weather on livestock and crops, according to the National Farmers Union.

The Union's deputy president has told Sky News he believes climate change may be to blame for unseasonal conditions like the damaging spring snowfall in 2013.

Meurig Raymond told Sky News: "The industry is facing the volatility of weather - maybe climate change. So feeding the world is going to be important going forward. We as farmers have to face up to that, but wake up for society as well."

His comments come as farmers say it will take years to recover financially from losses suffered during the coldest spring in 50 years.

Months on from snowfall that struck during lambing season, farmers have told Sky News their industry is still reeling from the heavy losses of livestock.

On the hills above Llanfairfechan in North Wales farmer Gareth Wyn Jones feeds the sheep that survived the heavy snow.

In March and April he spent weeks digging through feet of snow to recover the bodies of sheep and lambs that had perished.

Farmer Gareth Wyn Jones tends to his livestock in North Wales

Now, on a cold, sunny winter morning he surveys the surrounding hillsides that offer a stunning view across the Irish Sea.

He says the snow came at the worst possible time for sheep farmers. Most of the animals that died were new born lambs.

He estimates hundreds died on his farm alone.

"We lost about eighty breeding ewes and we lost a hundred ponies but we were fortunate - we dug eighty or ninety ewes out. A neighbour of ours lost half his hill flock overnight - gone," he said.

"There are some massive losses just in this little valley in North Wales."

Farmers in Northern Ireland, Scotland, Shropshire, Cumbria, Yorkshire and the Isle of Man also lost thousands of sheep and lambs.

The number of deaths forced the Welsh Assembly and Defra to temporarily relax strict EU rules that prevent farmers from burying dead animals. Usually farmers have to pay for carcasses to be removed.

Hundreds of sheep have been lost due to bad weather

Since the snowfall Defra says it has been working with farmers and  the insurance industry to ensure farmers are protected for future weather events.

They have also been working with the Met Office to publish detailed weather forecasts for farmers.

Joanne Briggs, from the National Sheep Association, told Sky News: "The time it will take for affected sheep farms to recover cannot be underestimated - it's not just the financial implications, which will take at least two or three years for business to overcome, but the loss of genetics from their flocks.

"Some bloodlines can never be replaced and that can mean a backward step of a decade or more for elite pedigrees.

"Like the animals that they care for, sheep farmers in general are incredibly resilient, but the spring of 2013 came at the end of an incredibly difficult 12 months and will leave a legacy for many years to come.

"But everyone can do their bit to support them, by making sure that when they buy lamb it is sourced from the UK."

Back on the farm in North Wales Mr Wyn Jones keeps an anxious eye on the long-term forecast.

He says he's not sure if they could cope with another spring snowfall. Most of his ewes are pregnant again and he's counting on the lambs due to be born this spring to help rebuild his livelihood.

:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.

14.47 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ski Hosting Ban: British Company Leads Appeal

By Harriet Hadfield, Sky News Reporter

A British ski holiday company is leading an appeal against a ban on ski hosting in the French Alps.

The appeal comes after a court in Chambery in France said that the informal on-piste group tours led by ski reps are illegal.

The judge ruled that all future hosts must be fully qualified ski instructors certified by the notoriously tough French examining system.

Yorkshire-based Le Ski has joined forces with 12 other British tour operators to argue that the decision is in breach of European law.

Nick Morgan from Le Ski told Sky News: "I think that somebody somewhere has gone a little bit too far in the formation of the law and we are hoping that that is seen by the appeal court and if not is taken up by the European Court in Luxembourg."

In 2012 a ski rep was arrested on the piste and the company was then prosecuted for compromising safety.

Some British skiers say they miss the social side of skiing in a group

Simon Atkinson from the French Ski School says: "Even when they say they're only there to help them round the slopes, the people who are on holiday actually do think that they're responsible for them.

"So when they go on to the slopes, they put their whole confidence in that person to take them round and they follow them."

Some British skiers on holiday in Courchevel told Sky News they are missing the social side of skiing in a group this season.

Julie Tate said: "I miss the guiding more than I thought I would, it's really important to me because I come skiing by myself and skiing with a small group of people with a guide is a really good way to get to know people on the slopes."

John Willis explained: "Rather than spend all day looking at the map and planning my route, the guide used to be there and I could follow them. I'm totally lost without them."

The next step in the legal process will be an appeal heard in a French court in Albertville.

:: Watch Sky News live on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.

14.47 | 0 komentar | Read More

US Sees Weak New Job Gains In December

The US economy added 74,000 new jobs in December, a level far below analysts' expections.

The figure takes unemployment to a five-year low, but industry experts had expected the US economy to add 197,000 new jobs last month.

The job creation figure, released by the Labor Department, is watched closely as a sign of the economy's health.

Meanwhile, the unemployment rate in the world's biggest advanced economy dropped to 6.7% - because fewer people were seeking work.

Foreign currencies, such as sterling, immediately strengthened against the dollar.

Analysts played down fears that the lower than expected rate of growth was a sign that the economy is stalling.

Joel Naroff, president of Naroff Economic Advisors, said: "I don't think the Fed is going to be panicked by this."

Dan Greenhaus, chief global strategist at brokerage firm BTIG, said: "We stop short of making larger observations based on this number.

"The economy, based on any number of other indicators, has been picking up steam of late which makes today's number ... curious."

The leisure, manufacturing and services sectors all added jobs in December.

But the construction sector shed 16,000 jobs - the biggest drop in 20 months - during a month when much of the country experienced bad weather.

The overall outlook for the US economy remains positive, with recent figures for consumer spending and industrial output strong.

The economy is predicted to grow by 3% in 2014, up on 1.7% last year.

The Federal Reserve responded to recent positive signs by announcing last month that it would start "tapering" its monetary stimulus programme by $10bn, from $85bn to $75bn.

:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.

14.47 | 0 komentar | Read More

Wall Street Giants To Aid £1bn Travelex Sale

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

The foreign currency provider Travelex has enlisted a pair of Wall Street titans to aid a plan that will involve a £1bn sale or flotation during 2014.

Sky News understands that Travelex has drafted in Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan to work on a deal that could value the stake held by the company's founder, Lloyd Dorfman, at £300m or more.

While a transaction is not imminent, insiders said that the appointment of the two investment banks was a signal that one was likely this year.

Apax Partners, the private equity group, has owned a controlling stake in Travelex since 2005 and is keen to offload its stake, on which it will augment an already handsome profit.

City sources said that JP Morgan was focusing on an initial public offering that would see Travelex make its stock market debut, while Goldman Sachs has been asked to field approaches from potential buyers of the company in addition to assisting with a flotation.

Rothschild was brought in last autumn to help evaluate options for the business.

A stock market listing, which would probably see Travelex join the FTSE-250 index of the public companies ranked between 101 and 350 by size on the London markets, remains the company's preferred route, the sources added.

Travelex was set up in 1976 by Mr Dorfman, who remains its chairman and second-largest shareholder. Mr Dorfman is one of Britain's most successful entrepreneurs, and is thought likely to remain on the board if it decides to pursue a listing.

Travelex has been reshaped since Peter Jackson, its chief executive, was recruited from Lloyds Banking Group in 2010, with the sale of its card management and global payments operations for an aggregate total of nearly £1bn.

Mr Jackson said last year that trading during the crucial summer period had been strong, and the business is understood to have continued to perform well since then.

A Travelex spokesman declined to comment.

:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.

14.47 | 0 komentar | Read More

Teachers 'Should Pass MoTs Or Face The Sack'

Teachers should be licensed and will face the sack if they fail to pass checks on their abilities, the Labour party has said.

Shadow education secretary Tristram Hunt said he wants teachers to be reviewed every few years to improve standards in England's state schools.

A similar proposal was floated by the previous Labour government - and dubbed "classroom MoTs" by former schools secretary Ed Balls - but was opposed by some unions and dropped before the 2010 general election.

Mr Hunt told the BBC: "Just like lawyers and doctors they should have the same professional standing which means re-licensing themselves, which means continued professional development, which means being the best possible they can be.

"If you're not a motivated teacher - passionate about your subject, passionate about being in the classroom - then you shouldn't really be in this profession."

Mr Hunt went on to tell The Times: "If we want to re-professionalise the teachers it would be crazy not to do it. If teachers are not re-licensed they will not be allowed to teach."

The Opposition has previously said it would insist on all teachers having Qualified Teacher Status, with staff already working in academies given a deadline to acquire a formal qualification.

A Conservative Party spokesman said the Government was willing to look any proposals which will "genuinely improve the quality of teaching".

He said: "We have already taken action by allowing heads to remove teachers from the classroom in a term, as opposed to a year previously, and scrapping the three-hour limit on classroom observations.

"We are improving teacher training, expanding Teach First and allowing heads to pay good teachers more. Thanks to our reforms, a record proportion of top graduates are entering the profession.

"Fixing the schools system so young people have the skills they need is a key part of our long-term economic plan."

:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602 and Freeview channel 82.

14.47 | 0 komentar | Read More

Record Online Xmas Sales Boost Festive Figures

Increasing use of tablets and smartphones and speedy delivery times are the major factors behind a sharp rise in online shopping before Christmas.

Web sales growth accelerated to 19.2% compared with the same month in 2012 - the fastest rate for more than three years.

However, overall UK retail sales grew by just 0.4% on a like-for-like basis.

The data from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) survey carried out by KPMG showed online trade represented 18.6% of total non-food sales in December, up from 16.5% the year before.

BRC director general Helen Dickinson said: "More of us clicked into Christmas than ever before, with online non-food sales growth putting in its best performance since March 2010 and accounting for nearly 20% of spending.

"The surge in the use of tablets and smartphones last year, together with the ever-faster delivery times achieved by an increasing number of retailers, has provided a new spur of growth to online shopping."

David McCorquodale, KPMG head of retail, said: "Whilst store sales continue to flatline, online sales remain the main driver of growth for the sector, contributing nearly three quarters of the uptick in non-food sales in the last quarter of 2013.

"The winners this Christmas were those retailers with slick multichannel operations, who could offer consumers the flexibility to shop how, and when, they wanted to."

In clothing, online purchases represented 21.2% of sales in December, up from 18% in 2012, while furniture and flooring products bought on the internet represented nearly a third of all sales, at 32.4% - though this was down a little on 32.6% last year.

The figure for electrical goods and toys was 14.4%, up from last year's 11.9% but a fall on the 15.5% who shopped online for these goods in November.

:: Watch Sky News live on television, on Sky channel 501, Virgin Media channel 602, Freeview channel 82 and Freesat channel 202.

14.47 | 0 komentar | Read More