2nd Jan 2012 06:14
The European Banking Authority has estimated that Barclays will have €4bn (£3.3bn) of "deferred tax assets" this year, compared with €5bn at Royal Bank of Scotland, and €7.3bn at Lloyds Banking Group. Deferred tax assets are highly prized by companies because they can be set against tax claims to re
Read more30th Dec 2011 12:46
London's top shares clawed back into positive territory as investors bid farewell to a turbulent 2011. Financials recovered from earlier weakness. Barclays was up 0.89%, Royal Bank of Scotland added 0.35% and Lloyds Banking Group recovered 1.61% in subdued pre New Year trading. Oil giants BP and
Read more30th Dec 2011 11:38
London's top shares remained in the red in midday trading, with trading light on the ground ahead of Friday's earlier than usual lunchtime close. Oil giants BP and Royal Dutch Shell each fell 0.5% as crude oil prices eased. However BG Group broke the downward trend, rising 0.51% after it said one
Read more30th Dec 2011 09:44
London's leading shares fell in light trading with financial and commodity plays under pressure in the year's final half-day trading session. Banks such as Barclays fell 0.9%, Royal Bank of Scotland lost 0.9% and Lloyds Banking Group dropped 0.8% in subdued pre New Year trading. Oil giants BP an
Read more22nd Dec 2011 13:36
Better-than-expected GDP data helped to boost financials into the top ten. Lloyds led the way, followed closely by RBS and Old Mutual as stocks rallied on news that the UK gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 0.6% in the third quarter in volume terms versus the previous three months, according to th
Read more21st Dec 2011 16:29
Sir Michael Rake, the Senior Independent Director of Barclays, has upped his stake in the firm less than a week after the global bank was downgraded by Fitch Ratings. Rake, who is currently also Chairman of telecommunications firm BT Group and Chairman of Easyjet, bought up 5,914 ordinary shares a
Read more21st Dec 2011 12:58
Banks, in particular Lloyds, were on the rise today, despite credit ratings agency Moody's saying Britain's cherished triple-AAA credit rating could be under threat if the Eurozone crisis worsens. Moody's Investors Service said last night: "Any additional weakening in the macro-economic outlook or
Read more21st Dec 2011 11:39
The banks were providing a lift at midday, but the Footsie was registering only slight gains with only a few days before Christmas. Hopes of a 'Santa rally' seem to have been dampened towards midday by the suspension from trading of shares of Unicredit 'limit-down'. They have since resumed trading
Read more20th Dec 2011 15:29
Temporary power supplier Aggreko was leading the gains on the FTSE 100 on Tuesday, as investors continue to celebrate yesterday's news that full-year profits should come in slightly ahead of previous guidance. Media stocks were also on the rise with advertising giant WPP among the best performers i
Read more20th Dec 2011 11:54
London's blue chip index was slightly down at midday, despite a temporary stint in the blue, with heavyweight banking and pharmaceuticals stocks providing a drag. The Footsie nevertheless has been trading within a narrow range, with just 33 points separating the intraday low and high. The European
Read more19th Dec 2011 16:19
The Footsie tanked in late afternoon trade with the government's response to Sir John Vickers banking report weighing heavily on the banking sector. In a debate in the House of Commons, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne said that lenders should be forced to ring-fence their high street len
Read more19th Dec 2011 14:21
The banks were among the worst performers of the day on Monday as they awaited a the government's response to proposed changes to the sector by the Independent Commission on Banking (ICB). The ICB has recommended that lenders should be forced to ring-fence their High Street lending operations from
Read more19th Dec 2011 11:50
The Footsie pared gains and was trading flat by midday with banking stocks providing a drag ahead of the government's response to Sir John Vickers' report into banking. The Bank of England's Quarterly Bulletin revealed that 56% of households surveyed reckoned that income available after tax, insura
Read more16th Dec 2011 14:48
The Accountancy and actuarial discipline board (AADB) has launched an investigation, under its accountancy scheme, into the conduct of Pricewaterhouse Coopers, auditors to Barclays Capital Securities, in relation to its role in reporting to the Financial Services Authority (FSA) on the firm's compli
Read more16th Dec 2011 14:14
Kazakhmys leapt into the top spot after investors learnt that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with the China Development Bank Corporation for a $1.5bn loan facility, which is to be used for the development of the major copper project at Aktogay, East Kazakhstan. The facility consists of
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