London open: Footsie struggles despite bumper Apple crop
20th Oct 2009 08:38
Excitement in the US over better than expected third quarter results from iPhone giant Apple has not crossed the Atlantic with UK blue chips struggling to make headway. Banks are proving a drag. Barclays is lower, seemingly on the news that its president Bob Diamond has turned down the chance to be
Read moreTuesday newspaper round-up: Bank tax, Apple, Nicholas Levene
20th Oct 2009 06:20
The Government has backed away in the face of speculation that it will impose a windfall tax on banks to punish them for paying excessive bonuses. The move came yesterday as City lawyers warned that rushing through legislation to crack down on bonuses would be unworkable and a legal minefield. Down
Read moreUpdate: FSA to protect borrowers from themselves
19th Oct 2009 13:48
City watchdog the Financial Services Authority (FSA) has unveiled a range of proposed changes to mortgage regulation designed to 'protect consumers more from themselves.' The headline-grabbing change proposed by the FSA is the scrapping of self-certification mortgages, with the regulatory body taci
Read moreFSA to outlaw self-certification mortgages
19th Oct 2009 09:17
Self-certification mortgages are for the scrap-heap, the Financial Services Authority said Monday, as it proposed a shake-up of mortgage regulations. The Financial Services Authority (FSA) said the onus of verifying affordability when a mortgage application is considered should be on the lender, wi
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: National Express, Bank tax, BP
19th Oct 2009 06:18
National Express on Sunday night confirmed that it had received another takeover approach from Stagecoach despite its rival walking away from a bid last month. The bus and trains group said it would consider the Stagecoach offer but would continue to work on an equity fund-raising to strengthen its
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: ENRC, RBS, Lloyds
18th Oct 2009 12:17
Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation (ENRC), the Ftse 100 metals and mining giant, is planning to buy out its founders' African assets in a potentially controversial deal. The deal, which has not been valued but could be worth more than $2bn (£1.2bn), would be paid entirely or mostly in shares rat
Read moreLondon midday: Looking for direction
13th Oct 2009 12:14
The Footsie has crawled into positive territory, helped by miners recovering from their weak opening. Kazakhmys is the pick of the sector after revealing it is in talks with the China Development Bank and JSC Sovereign Wealth Fund Samruk-Kazyna regarding a potential corporate loan facility of aroun
Read moreLondon open: Footsie in the red
13th Oct 2009 08:35
Stocks have fallen in early trade, with miners aiding the decline and as investors wait nervously for a flood of results from the US. Miners Randgold, Lonmin, Antofagasta and Rio Tinto are lower on weaker metal prices. But Whitbread was hot property, adding more than 3% after it reported an impro
Read moreLondon close: Best finish in 12½ months
12th Oct 2009 16:48
UK share prices finished at their best levels in over a year Monday and, despite a few sellers appearing late on, the FTSE 100 ended the session above 5,200. Insurers Old Mutual, Standard Life and Legal & General were in demand all day. Rising stock markets are always good news for their investment
Read moreLondon afternoon: Banks' balance sheet issues resurface
12th Oct 2009 14:23
The Footsie crashed through the 5200 barrier this morning to rise to a one-year high and although prices came off the top over the lunch-time session, the vast majority of blue-chips are still in the blue. The upward trend in global equity markets is good news for the insurers and their investment
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie at year-high
12th Oct 2009 12:07
London's blue chips hit their best level since September last year as buyers charged in again following the strong performance on Wall Street last week. There are strong risers in most sectors with the notable exception of banks where Barclays and Lloyds Banking are both lower. Banking giant Barcl
Read moreLondon open: London makes healthy start
12th Oct 2009 08:50
London has made a bright start helped by the strong finish to last week on Wall Street. Index heavyweight Vodafone is ahead along with Unilever, Shire and Segro as buyers dominate. Only Invensys and Randgold Resources are significantly in the red. Banking giant Barclays is lower despite reports it
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Barclays, JJB Sports, National Express
12th Oct 2009 06:24
Barclays is planning to spin off a £4bn portfolio of complex credit assets as the bank presses ahead with a process to clean up its balance sheet and ease shareholder concerns over its investments. The bank is looking at a deal to shift up to £4bn of the assets off its balance sheet in an echo of a
Read moreBarclays looking to sell £4bn of CDOs
12th Oct 2009 00:22
Banking giant Barclays is contemplating selling off another chunk of toxic assets. In a deal that has echoes of last month’s sale of $12.3bn of credit market assets to a new fund financed by Barclays, the UK bank is looking to remove £4bn of collateralised debt obligations from its balance sheet by
Read moreLondon close: Footsie puts on late spurt
5th Oct 2009 17:16
Having been lethargic all day leading shares put on a late spurt in London, after receiving a transatlantic boost in the form of better than expected data from the US services sector. Miners featured prominently among the top performers, helped by bullish comment from Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS).
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