LONDON (AP):
CABLE & Wireless Group PLC, Britain's second-largest telecommunications company, on Tuesday said its chief executive will step down, and warned that earnings at its main British business will stagnate in the fiscal year starting in April.
C&W also said it will split its business into two distinct units - one for its British activities and one for its international activities.
Shares in C&W dropped 10 per cent on the London Stock Exchange.
C&W has undergone significant restructuring over the past two years after pulling back from a $16 billion plan to become a global carrier for large businesses.
The company has shed its U.S. and Japanese businesses and announced 600 job cuts across Europe in November, when it unveiled a new business strategy to boost British performance. That included a plan to cut 10 per cent of its British workforce of 4,500 to reduce costs.
NO REPLACEMENT
The company said that because of the division of the company, there will be no replacement for CEO Francesco Caio when he steps down after the fiscal year ends in March.
Instead, Harris Jones will become chief executive of the international division, while John Pluthero will become chief executive of the U.K. division.
