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Daily Mail price to rise by 10% Date: Thursday 14 Jul 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Daily Mail publisher DMGT is putting the price of its main newspaper up by 5p to 55p as it seeks to cope with rising newsprint prices and declines in the advertising market and circulations. The price rise, which comes into effect on 18 July, is the first for the weekday edition of the Daily Mail since April 2008, DMGT said, adding that the price of the Saturday edition of the Daily Mail and the Mail on Sunday will remain unchanged. A Daily Mail will now cost 10p more than its main rival the Daily Express, which sells at 45p a copy. “The circulation of the Daily Mail has significantly out-performed the market throughout the last year; however, the continuing high cost of newsprint means it is necessary to increase the cover price of the newspaper,” DMGT said. The company said that advertising revenues were down by 7% year-on-year in the 13 weeks to 3 July, with those for the five weeks of June down by 9% “against the backdrop of the fragile consumer economy which has meant continued uncertainty for the retail sector.” The higher cover price will help to mitigate some of the recent decline in ad revenues, DMGT said. While DMGT says the latest price rise is to cope with rising newsprint prices and declining ad revenues, it has also been suffering from lower circulations. Circulation of the Daily Mail fell by 1.9% in the half year to 3 April. DMGT did not give any indication of circulations in the latest statement, except to say that it has outperformed the market, which was also the case in the half year to 3 April.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=20110714070000P5DA5

Carr’s Milling sees FY well ahead of forecasts Date: Thursday 14 Jul 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Agriculture and engineering firm Carr’s Milling Industries said it expects full year profitability to be well ahead of last year as robust trading continued into the third quarter. Carr's, which yesterday announced the completed sale of its fertiliser business to Origin Enterprises for £19m, said the third quarter was buoyed by a strong performance from its Agriculture division, particularly animal feeds, fuel oils and retail. The division also benefited from the colder spring weather in the north of the country and as it expanded its depots in 2010. Meanwhile Carr's said the expansion of Scotmin, the feed supplements business, into its existing UK distributor network is continuing and is proving successful. It added that its food division continues to operate in an increasingly difficult market while its engineering division performed strongly in the second half. Elsewhere in its food division the continuing over-capacity in the market persists, the group explained, and lower margins are having an impact on profitability, a trend it expects to continue into next year. "We continue to focus on reducing costs and improving efficiencies to mitigate this situation," it said. Overall Carr's said, year to date, it is trading ahead of 2010. A cash surplus is expected at the year-end. Net debt at 28 May 2011 was £29.8m, up £11.3m from a year earlier following higher working capital needs in line with higher raw material prices, particularly in its fertiliser business. The group added that its new plant in upstate New York is on track to start production of Aminomax in September 2011. Aminomax is a patented rumen bypass protein formulated to improve milk yields and profitability of dairy farmers. The board has declared a second interim dividend of 6.5p per share.

Overview Since the Interim Announcement of 11 April 2011, Carr's has continued to trade well resulting in a strong financial performance for the third quarter, in line with the Board's expectations. Consequently, we anticipate that profitability for the full year will be well above last year's underlying result. Highlights · Disposal of Carrs Fertilisers for £19.0 million, plus the discharge of Carrs Fertilisers' net debt (expected to be approximately £5.9 million) · Year to date trading is ahead of 2010 · Strong performance from Agriculture division, particularly animal feeds, fuel oils and retail · Food division continuing to operate in an increasingly difficult market · Engineering division performing strongly in the second half · Strong balance sheet; cash surplus expected at year end · Second interim dividend of 6.5 pence per share

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201107140700093570K

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201107141001233964K

Melrose ups bid for Charter Date: Thursday 14 Jul 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Charter International, the British maker of welding equipment, has confirmed it is considering a £1.4bn bid from investment firm, Melrose. The firm said Melrose has increased its proposed share and cash offer to 840p. It said this offer, which is a considerable improvement on a 780p approach made on June 29, was conditional on financing and due diligence. The board advised Charter shareholders to wait for further advice from the company. In June, Charter said full-year profit would be below earlier forecasts and announced further cost cutting.

Steady trading at Associated British Foods Date: Thursday 14 Jul 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - Associated British Foods said its outlook for the full year is in line with expectations as its food arm and budget clothing retail chain Primark continue to perform well. In the 16 weeks to 25 June, agriculture, grocery and ingredients revenue were higher than in the same period the previous year though sugar revenues fell back, due to a crop shortfall in the UK. Sales have remained strong at Primark, with revenues up by 13%. “A like-for-like sales increase in the UK and Ireland was achieved against a background of weak consumer demand,” the company said, adding that Primark’s trading in continental Europe has stayed strong. “Operating margins are lower in the second half reflecting higher input prices and the full effect of the absorption of the UK VAT increase,” the company said, also referring to Primark.

Financial position Higher commodity costs, which were the principal reason for the larger than usual increase in working capital in the first half, continued to affect cash flows in the third quarter. Capital expenditure remained substantially ahead of last year driven largely by the increased level of investment in new stores for Primark. Net debt at 25 June 2011 was £1.4bn and is forecast to reduce in line with expectations by the year end. Trading outlook Trading for the group since the half year remains on track to deliver adjusted earnings for the full year similar to last year's very strong result.

Interim management statement Associated British Foods plc today issues its third quarter management statement, in accordance with the requirements of the UK Listing Authority's Disclosure and Transparency rules. The figures stated below relate to the 40 weeks ended 25 June 2011. Highlights · Group revenue from continuing operations year to date up 9% · Primark growth - sales year to date up 13%, up 14% at constant exchange rates · Group trading outlook for the full year in line with expectations

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201107140700073387K

If you could stabilise the flow of chairmans then the SP might do likewise! Not a good sign they keep leaving.

The revolving door on the board room at Mitchells & Butlers is spinning again, with Simon Burke calling time on his stint as chairman of the pubs group after less than six months in the hot seat. Bob Ivell has been appointed as interim non-executive Chairman - the sixth chairman the company has had in the last three years.

A powerful shareholder group has demanded that James Murdoch stand down as chairman of BSkyB in a bid to clear up the "questionable governance practices" at the company. Pensions & Investment Research Consultants (Pirc) said the FTSE 100 broadcasting company needed a chairman free from connections with its biggest shareholder News Corporation, says the Telegraph.

Interim Management Statement Smiths News PLC ("the Group"), the largest UK newspaper and magazine wholesaler and a leading UK book wholesaler, is today issuing its Interim Management Statement covering the 19 week period ("the period") to 9 July 2011. The Group remains on track to deliver growth in pre-tax profits for the year to 31 August 2011, in line with market consensus. Smiths News revenues declined 2.8% on a like for like basis, with both newspapers and magazines sales being positively impacted by the Royal Wedding. Bertrams' revenues declined 7.5% on a like for like basis over the 19 week period. However, recent trading has been stronger with like for like sales for the most recent 6 week period, being in line with last year. The recommended offer for Dawson Holdings PLC announced on 7 June, continues through the offer timetable and is expected to complete by September. There has been no change in the underlying financial condition of the Group since the half year ended 28 February 2011 and the Group continues to operate well within its bank facilities. The Group will announce its preliminary results for the year ending 31 August 2011 on 20 October 2011.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201107140700083511K

Compass completes Turkish acquisition Date: Wednesday 13 Jul 2011 LONDON (ShareCast) - The world's largest caterer, Compass, has completed the acquisition of the remaining shares in its Turkish joint venture Sofra. In May Compass group announced it had agreed to acquire the remaining 50% of the issued share capital which it did not already own in Sofra subject to the go-ahead from Turkey's anti-trust board. In an anouncement to the London Stock Exchange, Compass confirmed that the necessary clearance has been received and the acquisition of the Istanbul-based food and support-service was complete.

http://www.investegate.co.uk/Article.aspx?id=201107131334043293K

Divi paid tomorrow?

The final quarter of the financial year ended 30 June 2011 saw Assets under Management ("AUM") increase by US$15.5 billion (31%) to US$65.8 billion, including AUM in the equity theme resulting from the completion of the acquisition of EMM L.L.C. (see note 1). There were net inflows of US$4.6 billion across the themes, particularly within the local currency, currency overlay (within "Other") and external debt themes. Asset realisations in special situations funds, that were completed after the reinvestment periods of those funds, enabled monies to be returned to investors. Positive investment performance contributed a further US$1.0 billion of AUM in the quarter. Performance fees for the year overall are estimated to be £85 million (H1 2010/11 £60.1 million: FY2009/10 £82.9 million) arising principally from strong investment performance for funds with August and April year ends. The Group will announce its results in respect of the financial year to 30 June 2011 on 13 September 2011. There will be a presentation for analysts at 0900 on that date at the offices of Goldman Sachs at Rivercourt, 120 Fleet Street London EC4A 2QQ. A copy of the presentation will be made available on the Group's website at www.ashmoregroup.com.