Broker snap: Investec downgrades HSBC, sees more upside elsewhere
15th Aug 2012 10:21
Investec has moved its recommendation on banking giant HSBC from 'buy' to 'hold', saying that there is limited upside left in the stock. "Despite recent relative share price underperformance, we would argue that HSBC's shares have held up reasonably well in the context of its broad-based money laun
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Greece, Barclays, Anglo American...
13th Aug 2012 06:50
Germany will block any new aid to ailing Greece if Athens does not fully comply with the terms of previous rescue packages, even if other countries support unlocking funds, a senior lawmaker said Sunday. The deputy head of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative parliamentary bloc, Michael Fuchs, to
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: StanChart, Food prices, Aviva
12th Aug 2012 17:01
Standard Chartered has embarked on a last-ditch push to secure a settlement with American prosecutors over money laundering allegations ahead of a crunch meeting on Wednesday. The British bank was last week accused by a New York state regulator of illegally processing $250bn (£160bn) of payments for
Read moreSunday share tips: Genel, Barclays, Crystalox
12th Aug 2012 16:01
Genel, the oil investment vehicle headed by Tony Hayward, the former chief executive of BP, has been unloved by the stock market. Genel had 1.8bn dollars (1.15bn pounds) of cash when it gave its last trading update. Last week it spent 240m dollars buying an additional 21 per cent interest in a Kurdi
Read moreLondon close: Footsie stages late recovery
10th Aug 2012 16:47
After trading in the red for most of the day Footsie put in a late spurt in the last half hour to claw back most of the day's losses. Shares, and in particular miners, had been on the back foot after some disappointing trade data from China. Chinese exports grew 1.0% from a year earlier in July,
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Market approves new Barclays Chairman
10th Aug 2012 14:46
Scandal-hit bank Barclays is to appoint City veteran Sir David Walker as its new Chairman. Walker will join the board on September 1st before replacing the outgoing Chairman, Marcus Agius, in November. Sector peer Standard Chartered, which has been embroiled in a scandal over its wholly-owned subsi
Read moreBroker tips: Barclays, Rentokil, Ryanair
10th Aug 2012 13:49
You only need to look at the share price to see the warm welcome the City has given to the appointment of City veteran Sir David Walker as the new Chairman of Barclays, but just in case, brokers have been weighing in to lend their support. "We struggle to see how the board could have found a better
Read moreBroker snap: Swift Barclays appointment is on the money
10th Aug 2012 13:47
You only need to look at the share price to see the warm welcome the City has given to the appointment of City veteran Sir David Walker as the new Chairman of Barclays, but just in case there was any doubt, brokers have been weighing in to lend their support. "We struggle to see how the board could
Read moreLondon midday: City approves of new Barclays Chairman
10th Aug 2012 11:54
Footsie bumbled along for most of the morning a little in the red, weighed down by mining stocks, which have been under selling pressure after weak Chinese trade data. The top-share index did briefly venture into positive territory around 11:00 but with US futures markets pointing to a soft opening
Read moreLondon open: Chinese trade data depresses miners
10th Aug 2012 08:50
Mining stocks are weighing down the Footsie in early trade after weak Chinese trade data was released on Friday morning. Chinese exports grew 1.0% from a year earlier in July, which is not the sort of growth the market has become used to; economists had plumped for a growth rate of 8.6%. Imports,
Read moreBarclays plays it safe with new Chairman appointment
10th Aug 2012 07:36
Barclays, the bank which saw a raft of senior executives resign last month following the LIBOR-fixing scandal is to appoint City veteran Sir David Walker as its new Chairman. Walker will join the board on September 1st before replacing the outgoing Chairman, Marcus Agius, in November. Walker has s
Read moreFriday newspapers round-up: Barclays new Chairman, LIBOR, FSA
10th Aug 2012 06:45
Sir David Walker, former Deputy Governor of the Bank of England, and described by The Times as 'a veteran City grandee', has been named as the new Chairman of scandal-hit bank Barclays. His arrival caps a career that has included stints at the Treasury, Lloyds Bank, Legal & General and latterly Morg
Read moreThursday newspaper round-up: StanChart, Barclays, Chinese inflation...
9th Aug 2012 06:55
Standard Chartered has sought advice about whether it can pursue a legal action against the US regulator that on Monday accused the British bank of being a rogue institution which had funded $250bn of Iranian sanctions breaches. The bank's legal advisers believe "there is a case" for claiming reputa
Read moreBroker snap: StanChart rebound lifts banks higher
8th Aug 2012 16:23
Banking stocks were trading broadly higher on Wednesday as gains for heavyweight lender Standard Chartered were enough to offset weakness in the wider sector, with HSBC, Lloyds, Barclays and RBS trading in the red. Following a massive 16% tumble yesterday, emerging markets-focused bank StanChart wa
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Standard Chartered plunges
7th Aug 2012 14:15
Emerging markets-focused banking titan Standard Chartered fell after the US banking regulator accused it of collusion with the government of Iran to hide transactions from authorities. Nomura, Oriel Securities and Bank of America all downgraded their ratings on the stock this morning. ?? Nomura cut
Read more