The group duly produced a statement but a pounds 377m publishing takeover was not what the speculators expected. The shares ended 7p lower at 683p.United Newspapers slipped 7p to 645p and its intended partner, MAI, 13p to 435p, still above the bid terms. Carlton Communications, everyone's favourite to spoil the party, gained 12p to 1,034p.Elsewhere profit warnings took their toll. In early trading the shares were up 17p on anticipation of a bid announcement. Indications that the Germans were kicking their heels over their next interest rate cut was another inhibiting influence.Media shares settled down after their recent excitement Pearson again had a volatile session. But the market did manage to draw a little belated strength from New York, which during London trading powered to another peak.After drifting for much of the day the FT-SE 100 index, as if shamed by New York's exuberance, turned what had been a 16 points fall into a 7.9 gain pushing Footsie to 3,716.3.Worries about the contents of the Scott Report and possible Government resignations were cited for the early unease. Mr Allwin will combine the post with the company's real estate and venture capital activities, which he currently heads..

Burmah Castrol, the chemical, lubricants and oil group, was propelled into the fast lane by Merrill Lynch, the securities house. The shares rose 51p to a 1,039p peak in busy trading as Merrill urged its clients to buy. The securities house suggested the shares were worth up to 1,600 on trading grounds with a pounds 20 break-up value. In a circular headed "Barbarians at the gates of Swindon" - the oil group is based in the Wiltshire town - Merrill suggests profits of pounds 260m last year and pounds 410m in the year 2000.With Burmah shares riding at a new high it is a far cry from the dark days of the early 1970s when the group was nearly crushed in the pitiless bear market which saw many companies go to the wall.At one time the share were down to the equivalent of 40p or so. Mr Allwin replaces Donald Brennan, managing director of Morgan Stanley Capital Partners, the merchant banking division, who will continue as advisory director at the firm. In 1990 it announced a pounds 305m restructuring to reduce costs. In 1990 a pounds 490m charge signalled further cost reductions - although the benefits did not begin to feed through to profits until last year.Analysts were not expecting a third round of exceptional charges. However, Unilever has been moving towards the concentration of production in larger plants both in the US and the UK..

Morgan Stanley, the US investment bank, announced yesterday that it has appointed James Allwin, current president of its investment management operation, to head its merchant banking division. They were waiting for a strategic review by chairman-elect Niall FitzGerald, who is keen to enable management to respond more quickly to market needs.In the US, Unilever will concentrate liquid detergent production at St Louis, with production of detergent powder centred on Cartersville, Georgia. The closure and transfer of production to the Georgia plant is expected to be completed by the end of the year.Unilever has been trying to improve manufacturing competitiveness and has made two big provisions in the last five years. There will also be big changes in Unilever's European food businesses - but no details are yet known.It is possible that Unilever will reveal further details with its full- year results on 20 February. Job losses in the UK seem likely.The pounds 225m charge will be taken against the group's fourth- quarter profits with pounds 62m for the American detergents cuts and pounds 126m at the European food businesses.The timing of the announcement surprised City analysts. GWR, the commercial radio company and ITN yesterday emerged as the new controlling shareholders of London News Radio, Reuters' loss- makingcommercial radio business, writes Mathew Horsman.

The long-expected deal sees Reuters retain a 20 per cent stake in LNR GWR will take 31 per cent, with ITN taking 29 per cent. The remaining 20 per cent wil be held by Daily Mail & General Trust. The radio stations, formerly LBC, lost pounds 3.5m in the fifteen months to 31 December 1994, according to GWR. Ralph Bernard, GWR chairman , said his company's exposure was limited to pounds 2.2m, including a maximum of pounds 1.7m of promised further working capital.Mr Bernard said GWR would bring an understanding of commercial radio while ITN offered big broadcasting expertise as a result of its Independent Radio News operation. The London News AM and FM stations will be relaunched and relocated to the ITN building It is expected that they will remain "news talk" formats..