Construction firm faces downturn with confidence

Robison & Davidson, the Scottish construction group, greeted the credit crunch and ensuing housing downturn on the crest of a wave with record profits.

Bid talk sees OHM value rise

Shares in Offshore Hydrocarbon Mapping (OHM) surged by 89% yesterday when the oil and gas exploration technology firm that has suffered trading set-backs said it was in talks with a potential bidder.

Granite City beats the gloom

More than £360m of new investment in retail, leisure and commercial developments in Aberdeen has helped propel the city into the top 20 UK shopping destinations for the first time.

Risks remain in global financial system, warns Bank report

The Bank of England warns today that risks remain in the global financial system, with an economic downturn under way and “signs of distress” in emerging market economies.

New deposits jump 70% at Abbey

Spanish-owned high street bank Abbey today said new deposits had jumped 70% so far this year as customers looked for safe havens in the banking turmoil.

European markets reduce losses but sentiment still fragile

European stock markets recovered much of their steep early losses, helped by speculators looking for bargains after sharp drops in earlier Asia trading, although sentiment in financial markets remains fragile on fears of a global recession.

Scope for interest rate cuts as inflation expectations fall

The UK public’s overall forecast of inflation over the next 12 months has tumbled to just 2.9% in the latest monthly survey, from 4.4% in September, signalling a firm belief that it will plunge from its current level of 5.2% as recession kicks in.

	Wolfson share price tumbles 4% on sales downgrade
	Shares in Wolfson Micro-electronics plunged almost 4% yesterday after the Scottish microchip maker for many of the world’s must-have electronic consumer gadgets reported a 37% fall in third-quarter profit and reduced its fourth-quarter sales outlook.

Hold it, flash, bang, wallop, what an economic snapshot

Alf Young on Tuesday: The Bank of England’s latest half-yearly finan- cial stability report, published overnight,probably needs a new title.

Woes pile up for Persimmon

Fresh evidence that the turmoil in financial markets is hitting housing sales came yesterday from Persimmon, which brought forward a planned trading statement to warn that falling house selling prices have resulted in it writing down the value of its land holdings by a further £600m.

Royal expected to announce up to £3bn of further write-downs

Royal Bank of Scotland is expected to make billions of pounds of further write-downs in respect of risky financial assets in the second half, details of which could be released this week.

UK Meter Exchange expands asset base

UK Meter Exchange, the Glasgow-based gas metering firm, yesterday announced a major expansion of its asset base following a £2.5m acquisition from one of its major rivals.

Sanmex benefits from liquid disposal

Sanmex, the Scottish family-owned manu- facturer of aerosol products, has significantly boosted its profits in the year after selling off one of its divisions.

Opec on sidelines as economy fears drive down price of crude

Crude oil prices tumbled to a new 17-month low below $62 a barrel yesterday, driven down by a gloomy assessment of the world economy, but later bounced back above the $63 level.

Dennis has £15m orders for hybrids

Alexander Dennis, the Falkirk-based bus builder, yesterday announced it had £15m orders in the pipeline for pioneering hybrid models that could help operators slash operating costs and carbon emissions.

More ...