PRESS DIGEST - Financial Times - April 9

PROPERTY PRICES RISE AS MORE HOMES GO ON SALE

The British bank Halifax, a subsidiary of Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY.L), has released its house price index, showing that house prices rose by 1.1 percent in March, reversing a 1.6 percent decline in the previous month. The average price for the first quarter of 2010 finished 0.6 percent higher than the same period in 2009. Martin Ellis, housing economist at Halifax, said that the return of stamp duty on lower-priced homes and severe adverse weather will both have had a negative effect on house prices in the first two months of the year.

COURT BATTLES HIT EIGHT-YEAR HIGH FOR BUSINESS

The number of disputes heard by business tribunals rose by over 20 percent at the Commercial Court and the London Court of International Arbitration, the latter seeing a 30 percent rise in the number of cases heard, which has been attributed to the effects of the financial crisis. Mr Justice Gross, the judge in charge of the Commercial Court, said that he had not spoken with any lawyers or arbitrators who had experienced a rise in litigation as a result of the crisis, but that such a factor would be difficult to distinguish from any others.

TELEVISION LEADS THE WAY WITH SWIFT ADVERTISING REBOUND

Research group Screen Digest has doubled its estimate of the amount of growth in television advertising in the UK for 2010 to 4.6 percent. The forecast estimates that television advertising in the UK will grow faster than in the rest of Europe and make a stronger recovery than any other offline medium. If proved correct, this will be the first year that television advertising has grown in the UK since 2005. British broadcaster ITV (ITV.L) enjoyed a 20 percent increase in its share price in the last month after reporting a seven percent increase in first-quarter revenues.

IRON ORE PRICE RISE TO BOOST VEDANTA

India-based mining group Vedanta (VED.L) increased production across the company in the year to the end of March. Its iron ore production unit, which expanded with the acquisition of Dempo, increased its output by 34 percent to 21.4 million tonnes over the last year, leaving it in a strong position to benefit from the sharp rise in the price of iron ore last month. The company plans to increase iron ore production to 50 million tonnes by 2013. Shares in Vedanta closed down 45 pence at 28.73 pounds on Thursday.

UK MAIL RIDES RECESSION TO MAINTAIN REVENUE

Postal operator UK Mail has announced that its revenues for the year to March 31 are expected to equal those of the previous year at 388 million pounds, despite a drop in demand caused by the financial crisis. Its share price after the announcement on Thursday rose 21.5 pence to 333.5 pence, an increase of 28 percent over the past year. Chief executive Guy Buswell insisted that the company has good long-term prospects despite intense competition in the sector and reduced demand from direct marketers.

EASYJET BOOSTS TRAVELLER NUMBERS

Budget airline EasyJet (EZJ.L) has announced a year-on-year increase in the number of passengers carried in March this year. EasyJet flew 3.96 million passengers in March 2010, 13.5 percent more than the 3.49 million carried in March 2009. Rival airline Ryanair reported a 13 percent rise to 5.3 million for the same period. EasyJet said that it has benefited from the strike at rival airline British Airways BAY.L, which has seen a 15 percent year-on-year drop in passenger numbers due to industrial action. EasyJet has also recently increased its number of flights across Europe.

HAYS WARY OVER STATIC REGIONAL JOBS MARKET

Britain's largest recruitment agency, Hays (HAYS.L), said that the UK jobs market remains stagnant outside of London. The claim was supported by rival Robert Walters, and both companies voiced concerns over a planned increase in national insurance. Hays finance director Paul Venables also warned of the consequences of a potential hung parliament, saying: "Our business is driven by candidate confidence and that's driven by economic certainty. We need a clear decision and a mandate."

BP TO REDUCE THUNDER HORSE PRODUCTION

This week, energy company BP (BP.L) will begin to shut down around 50 percent of the wells feeding its Thunder Horse oil and gas platform at a cost of around 500 million dollars in lost production and direct construction costs. The platform has been running on a temporary bypass system since it saw its first oil in 2008 and the shut-in comes as a result of the installation of a permanent system. A source close to the situation said that the pullback in production had been factored into BP's production forecast.

LADBROKES TILTS AT FRENCH GAMBLING MARKET

Betting firm Ladbrokes (LAD.L) has announced a joint venture with French broadcaster Canal+ that will give Ladbrokes access to the broadcaster's 12.5 million subscribers and a foothold in France's newly regulated gambling market. The deal, underpinned by 2.25 million euros from each partner, ensures that Ladbrokes will refrain from operating any other e-gaming business in France while its remains a shareholder in the joint venture and for two years thereafter.

VICTREX BOUNCES AFTER RECOVERY IN POLYMER SALES

Plastics manufacturer Victrex (VCTX.L) saw shares rise more than 10 percent on Thursday thanks to a strong recovery in polymer sales during the first half of the year. Victrex saw a steep fall in profits last year due to a collapse in demand for Peek, a high-grade plastic of which Victrex is the leading global manufacturer. Victrex said that an upturn in sales in the second half of last year had continued, with recovery through the first three months of 2010 generating a 52 percent increase in sales volumes to 1,170 tonnes.