London afternoon: Stocks still in the same range
9th Apr 2010 14:06
Footsie is performing in the same range and is unlikely to get any direction from the US, which is due to start with modest gains. Resource stocks are underpinning strength in the Footsie with silver miner Fresnillo top of the tree. Xstrata is going well following reports in the Australian press th
Read moreAviva re-enters Asian general insurance market
9th Apr 2010 11:47
Aviva has re-entered the Asian general insurance market, five years after the insurance firm moved out of the region, by launching services in Singapore. Singapore will be used as a starting point and the group intends to roll out the business in other "key markets" in Asia. Starting with direct
Read moreFriday newspaper round-up: Aviva, Petrol, Rio Tinto
9th Apr 2010 05:48
Aviva, the UK insurance group, is to re-enter the Asian general insurance market in the second major move in the region by a British insurer in two weeks. The group, which has a substantial Asian life insurance business, will announce on Friday that it plans to re-enter the general market five years
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Financials move higher
24th Mar 2010 15:38
Financials are moving ahead following the Budget. Banks seem to have been the major beneficiaries of the Chancellor's speech, with the absence of any bank bashing leading to firmer prices for part-nationalised lenders Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Banking Group. Hedge fund manager Man Group e
Read moreLondon close: Weak finish as banks retreat
18th Mar 2010 16:35
London closed in the red after a mixed opening on Wall Street as banks and miners ran into profit taking. Among the big caps, GlaxoSmithKline was the best performer, after rival drug group, Switzerland's Novartis, had to hand back US rights of a drug widely considered a generic copy of Glaxo's top
Read moreLondon afternoon: Back to square one
18th Mar 2010 15:19
A mixed opening on Wall Street has provided no guidance for a similarly rudderless London market. Among the big caps, GlaxoSmithKline is the best performer, after rival drug group, Switzerland's Novartis, had to hand back US rights of a drug widely considered a generic copy of Glaxo's top selling
Read moreLondon midday: Second liners hog the limelight
18th Mar 2010 11:54
While the FTSE 100 is becalmed most of the action is taking place in the FTSE 250 today, where a mixed bag of announcements has prompted varied share price reactions. Electronic components distributor Premier Farnell powered ahead after reporting full year sales and underlying profits for fiscal 20
Read moreLondon open: Banks lead decline
18th Mar 2010 08:26
London's top stocks have slipped back in early dealings on Thursday, with banks leading the index lower. Lloyds Banking, Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland are the three worst performers on the Footsie, closely followed by HSBC. Bakery and sandwich chain Greggs saw full-year profits come in sligh
Read moreAviva agrees Indonesian joint venture
18th Mar 2010 07:20
Aviva said it has entered into the Indonesian insurance market through a joint venture agreement with PT Asuransi Wahana Tata. Under the terms of the deal, Aviva is acquiring a 60% share in PT Asuransi Winterthur Life Indonesia (WLI), which has gross assets of £15m and which manages pension fund a
Read moreLondon close: Footsie hits 18-month high
5th Mar 2010 17:00
Strong economic data from the US sent Footsie to its highest levels since late 2008. The leading share index closed a whisker shy of the 5,600 point mark. A much better than feared read on US non-payrolls sparked the surge. The US jobs figures showed 36,000 jobs were lost in February, compared wit
Read moreLondon afternoon: Footsie through 5,600, 18-month high
5th Mar 2010 16:07
London's blue-chips have surged forward to an 18-month high and climbed above 5,600 for the first time since late 2008. A much better than feared read on US non-payrolls has spaeked today's surge, with the Dow adding 100 points and miners surging higher alongside bank shares. The US jobs figures s
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie powers on
5th Mar 2010 11:58
London's blue-chips are nearing a 52-week high on renewed optimism over the banks, a good morning for miners and despite a mixed read on UK factory gate inflation. The cost of goods at the factory gates in February was 4.1% higher than a year earlier, a tad above the 4% annual gain expected by eco
Read moreAmlin non-exec trebles shareholding
4th Mar 2010 16:48
Non-executive director Tony Holt has bought more than £2m worth of shares in insurance underwriter Amlin. Holt bought 500,000 shares at 411.75p each, which takes his shareholding to 759,102 shares. Holt joined Amlin in 1980 and was appointed to the board in 2000. He was group underwriting direct
Read moreLondon close: Footsie suffers hiccup
4th Mar 2010 16:40
The blue chip index failed to stretch its winning streak to a fifth session, falling for the first time this week on negative results reaction and downbeat miners. It held above 5,500 all day despite coming close just after trade began and towards the end of play. Engineering and project managemen
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Results dominate index
4th Mar 2010 16:05
A mixed bag of results dominate the main movers in the Footsie. The bright spot was fund manager Schroders. Net new business inflows jumped to £15bn in 2009 compared with net outflows of £9.6bn in 2008, while funds under management ended the year at £148.4bn versus £110.2bn a year earlier. Total p
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