In Short

A round-up of today's other stories in brief

New product concerns hit toymaker

Toymaker Hasbro posted better-than-expected quarterly earnings yesterday on strong demand for movie-related toys such as Transformers and Spiderman, but its shares fell nearly 5 per cent amid concern about how it will drive sales next year.

Arcadia Investment analyst John Taylor said Hasbro shares may be slipping because investors are worried about how the company is going to replace Transformers and Spiderman.

Excluding a one-time charge, Hasbro said its second-quarter earnings were $41.3 million (€30 million), or 24 US cents a share, six cents above the average forecast. - (Reuters)

Finavera welcomes US proposal

Finavera Renewables, an Irish renewable energy company listed in Toronto, has welcomed a proposal from the United States Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to shorten the permitting process for pilot ocean energy projects to as little as six months.

To date, the regulatory process has been one of the primary hurdles to the commercialisation of offshore wind energy, Finavera said.

Trial projects have taken years to move through the permitting process, taking away valuable time in enacting a technology that shows great promise in reducing dependence on fossil fuels, it said.

Domino's delivers strong growth

Domino's Pizza said it expects full-year profit to exceed market expectations after recording strong growth in both its UK and Irish businesses in the first half.

In a statement to the stock exchange yesterday, the company said profit at its UK and Irish outlets increased 35 per cent in the 26 weeks to the start of July, while like-for-like sales were 14.9 per cent ahead of the same period last year.

The company, which has 32 outlets in the Republic and 11 in the North, declined to break out separate figures for Ireland, but said that after a slow start, the company was pleased with the rollout of its internet ordering service in Ireland.

C&C in €5.2m share buyback

Drinks group C&C continued its share buyback programme, acquiring a further 600,000 shares at a cost of €5.2 million.

IN&M spends €3.4m on its stock

Independent News and Media (IN&M) said yesterday it has spent €3.41 million acquiring a further one million of its own shares. The stock will be held in treasury and brings to 23.6 million the number of units held in this way.

Forum for chief executives

Up to 600 chief executives are expected to attend this year's CEO Forum, which is sponsored by Deloitte and Enterprise Ireland. The event will take place in the new Radisson SAS Royal Dublin Hotel on Thursday, November 15th and the Radisson SAS Hotel Limerick on Friday, November 16th.

The theme of this year's forum is "The role of Leadership in Irish Business" and speakers include Michael Carey, chief executive of Jacob Fruitfield, and Jim Breen, chief executive of Pulse Learning.

Insurance groups in merger talks

Britain's Resolution and Friends Provident are in advanced merger talks to create a group worth almost £9 billion, the two insurers said yesterday, rekindling hopes of consolidation across the sector.

After months of market speculation over possible mergers among British life insurers, confirmation of talks between the two smallest blue-chip players boosted shares across the board yesterday. - (Reuters)