A round-up of today's other news stories in brief
Insurance groups closer to merger
Insurance industry lobby groups, the Professional Insurance Brokers Association and the Irish Brokers Association, have moved closer to a merger.
The two associations announced yesterday that they were entering the due diligence phase of their merger negotiations.
A joint document will now be prepared for presentation to separate egms of both organisations to be held in September.
Final approval of the merger will require 75 per cent of the members of both bodies to vote in favour of it.
Beamish stout wins gold medal
Beamish & Crawford's flagship brand, Beamish Stout, has won the Gold Medal at the annual Monde Selection 2007 Awards in Barcelona.
Beamish Stout secured the award for quality and excellence in the beer and soft drinks category, beating off competition from competitors throughout the drinks industry worldwide.
Commenting on the award, Thomas Brady, Beamish brand manager, said the company was delighted to have won one of the highest accolades awarded by the Monde Selection, which recognises the high quality consistent brewing process of Beamish Stout. The Monde Selection Awards is an annual awards ceremony recognising quality and excellence in the beverage industry worldwide.
Monde Selection is an independent international institute founded in 1961 on a Belgian initiative in Brussels making it the oldest and most representative organisation in the field of Quality Selections worldwide.
BA long-haul surcharge rises
British Airways said yesterday it would raise the fuel surcharge paid by passengers on long-haul flights from June 13th because of further rises in the price of oil.
The surcharge on long-haul flights of less than nine hours will rise to £38 per flight from £33, and to £43 from £38 pounds for flights longer than nine hours, BA said in a statement.
The surcharge paid by customers on short-haul flights is unchanged at £8 per flight.
BA commercial director Robert Boyle said they had little choice but to pass on recent rises in the cost of fuel. He said BA expected to pay over £2 billion for fuel this year. - (Reuters)
Amarin receives delisting note
Drug company Amarin has received formal notification from the Nasdaq stock exchange that it faces delisting as its shares have been trading below $1 for 30 consecutive days.
Amarin's share price slumped at the end of April following the publication of disappointing data for its Huntington's disease drug Miraxion.
The company the letter of notification had been expected.
The company has 180 days to trade above $1 for 10 consecutive days before it moves to the next stage of delisting.
Amarin, in which former Elan finance director Tom Lynch has an 18 per cent shareholding, also has a listing on the Irish Stock Exchange's IEX market.
Eagle Star Life in top companies
The entry for Eagle Star Life in The Irish TimesTop 1000 Companies supplement carried incorrect information.
The information should have read: Michael Brennan, is chief executive of Eagle Star Life which, at December 31st last, had assets of €€6.2 billion, ranking the company in 33rd position among Ireland's top financial companies.
The company employs 485 people and operates in the pensions, investment and protection business. The company address is Eagle Star Life, Blackrock, Co Dublin. The telephone number is 01 2831301 www.eaglestarlife.ie.
