Thus to accept bid by rival C&W

The board of Scottish telecoms company Thus yesterday abandoned all hope of remaining independent - moving finally to recommend that its shareholders accept a £329m cash offer from Cable & Wireless.

Bradford & Bingley crashes into the red

Beleaguered lender Bradford & Bingley today said it had crashed into the red in the first half of 2008, after credit crunch losses and rising bad debts.

Warning of two million jobless by Christmas

UK retail sales have plunged this month at the fastest annual rate since comparable records began in 1983.

SMG reveals Scottish TV profits up 26%

Scottish television group SMG today shrugged off the tough advertising markets plaguing the media sector and said it was on track to hit full-year targets.

Buses drive Stagecoach

Perth-based transport company Stagecoach said yesterday that its profits since the May 1 start of its new financial year had been better than it had expected, mainly because of greater-than-anticipated revenue growth in its UK bus division.

Euro near lifetime high against pound

The pound tumbled further against the euro yesterday, with the single currency climbing to an intra-day high of 80.6p which was within 0.4p of its 80.97p lifetime high in April.

	SMG reduces level of debt by more than 90%
	SMG yesterday posted a pre-tax profit of £4.2m in the first half of 2008 and said it has reduced its massive debt mountain by more than 90%.

Venture hungry for more North Sea assets

Mike Wagstaff, chief executive of Venture Production, said the North Sea-focused oil and gas firm was hungry to buy more assets in the mature province after achieving record profits in the first half.

Havelock Europa ‘solid’ on retail and education

Havelock Europa, the Fife-based shopfitting-to-school-furniture group, said trade was bearing up despite tough times for the key retail and banking sectors.

Package maker in confident mood

Macfarlane Group said yesterday that its first-half, pre-tax profit more than doubled and it is confident it can cope with the effects of a general economic downturn.

Melrose Resources recovers from last year’s Bulgarian setbacks

Melrose Resources surged back into the black in the first half when strong growth in output helped the firm put last year’s exploration reverses in Bulgaria behind it.

Factory closure checks profits growth at Devro

Sausage-skin maker Devro saw its first-half sales sizzle, but pre-tax profits fell after it was hit by a £3.1m charge related to the closure of a factory in the Czech Republic, the company’s latest accounts reveal.

Downturn sees Forth Ports defer property spend

Forth Ports, the Scottish ports-to-property business, yesterday unveiled a 38% surge in underlying pre-tax profit and said it had deferred almost 70% of its spending on property development because of the downturn in the market.

BenRiach Distillery buys up Aberdeenshire firm

Glendronach distillery in Aberdeenshire has been sold, it was announced yesterday.

Aer Lingus blames fuel costs for loss

Irish airline Aer Lingus yesterday reported an operating loss of €22.3m (£17.8m) in the first half of this year, hit by a jump of almost 50% in its fuel costs and a slowdown in consumer spending.

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