Siemens considers shedding 4,700 jobs

Siemens, the German company that employs more than 1,000 staff in the Republic, is considering shedding up to 4,700 staff at its two telecom equipment units.

The Siemens divisions likely to be affected are ICN, which makes fixed-line equipment, and ICM, which makes mobile handsets and network equipment. However, the firm said yesterday no final decisions had been taken on job cuts. About 300 staff are employed at these units in the Republic where 12 employees were made redundant earlier this year following a corporate restructuring.

A Siemens spokesman said yesterday the firm had no plans for a further restructuring, although he conceded the state of the telecoms market meant firms were looking "by the week" at their businesses.

Musgraves mops up Budgens stock

CORK-BASED retail group Musgraves will compulsorily acquire any outstanding shares in Budgens it does not own. Musgraves' offer for the British group became unconditional earlier this week when it gained control over more than 90 per cent of the shares.

Navan Mining to seek refinancing

NAVAN Mining will hold an extraordinary meeting on August 27th to seek approval for a refinancing and to allow it to amend its share option schemes. As part of its refinancing, Navan has agreed a three-year £7 million sterling (€11 million) equity credit line facility with GEM Global Yield Fund. The formal subscription agreement was entered into by Navan on July 29th but needs shareholder approval before the company can draw it down.

The company is also proposing amendments to its share option schemes to reflect the refinancing and to allow it to grant share options to chief executive Mr Laurence Marsland.

BA unsettles with sales warning

BRITISH Airways (BA) beat market forecasts by tripling operating profits in its first quarter to the end of June but unsettled investors as it warned that full-year sales would fall below last year's already depressed level. BA chairman Lord Marshall said the travel market was still affected by "considerable global economic and political uncertainty" and was expected to remain "soft" for the rest of the year.

"Full-year total group revenues are expected to be lower than last year and improvement in operating results will come principally through cost reductions." Group turnover in the first quarter fell by 10.7 per cent to £2 billion sterling (€3.2 billion). - (Reuters)

Four Seasons cuts profit estimates

FOUR Seasons Hotels group, a barometer of the top-end travel sector, has cut profit estimates for the year after weak corporate travel pared second-quarter profits by more than a third. A bigger-than-expected loss at its New York luxury hotel, The Pierre, and soft demand for rooms at its US city properties hurt its bottom line.

Four Seasons, with about 55 luxury hotels around the world, including one in Dublin, reported earnings of Can$18.1 million (€11.5 million). Mr Jason Ader, an analyst at Bear Sterns in New York, said he does not expect hotel chains to recover before 2004. - (Reuters)

Morgan Grenfell sells Coral

MORGAN Grenfell Private Equity has sold Coral Eurobet to Charterhouse Development for £860 million sterling (€1.4 billion), ending the race for Britain's third-biggest betting shop chain.

Morgan Grenfell said the sale of Coral, which runs 870 shops as well as an internet betting business, was expected to be completed in September, pending approval by EU regulators.

The deal ends months of speculation during which Rank, Stanley Leisure and privately held Gala Group were all tipped as possible buyers, and a flotation of Coral was also touted.

- (Reuters)