Finance Notes: BT Reports 14% Boost In Annual Pre-Tax Profit To £2.645B

BT has reported a 14% boost in annual pre-tax profit to £2.645B, but group revenue fell 2% to £17.85B in the period. BT also confirmed that shareholders last week approved its £12.5B ($19B) acquisition of mobile group EE subject to regulatory approval. It plans to "keep the EE brand extant in the short term" (MARKETING MAGAZINE, 5/7). ... Premiership Rugby side Newcastle Managing Dir Mick Hogan is "confident the club can become a Premiership force despite incurring huge losses for a second successive year." The club lost £3.6M in season '13-14, up from £3.1M the year before, but Hogan predicts a "vast improvement this time around." Hogan said, "The club paid a heavy price for relegation and then getting back up and maintaining that Premiership status. But the situation is improving and, although we're not finalized, our losses for this year will significantly decrease." Falcons turned over just £6.1M in '13-14, "with wages swallowing up almost all of that" (THE RUGBY PAPER, 5/6).