London afternoon: Footsie eases into the red
5th Oct 2009 13:45
The Footsie dipped into the red over the lunch-time session but it was a very shallow dip, with leading shares mixed and mostly sticking close to overnight levels. Life insurer Aviva is the heaviest faller in the FTSE 100 after it confirmed it is to sell a minority stake in its Dutch insurance bus
Read moreLondon midday: Shares still sluggish
5th Oct 2009 12:13
Equities are in sluggish mood on the first day of trading this week and the leading share index sits just below the 5,000 point level. Life insurer Aviva is the heaviest faller in the FTSE 100 after it confirmed it is to sell a minority stake in its Dutch insurance business Delta Lloyd through a fl
Read moreThursday newspaper round-up: Bankers' bonuses, Northern Rock
1st Oct 2009 05:51
A divide has already emerged between Europe and the US over how to implement new Group of 20 rules on bankers' bonuses, with British banks facing a stricter regime than is likely to apply in the US. The UK government on Wednesday night rushed out a statement trumpeting the agreement of Britain's t
Read moreUK banks agree to limits on bonuses
30th Sep 2009 17:44
The five biggest banks in Britain will enforce the limits on bonuses agreed by world leaders at the G20 summit in Pittsburgh last week, UK chancellor Alistair Darling said today. Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, RBS and Standard Chartered have all signed up and will hope overseas rivals follow suit. Darlin
Read moreLondon close: Directionless day for FTSE 100
29th Sep 2009 16:52
Footsie finished slightly in the red after another day of flitting between the red and the blue while not showing any real sense of direction. Swiss bank Credit Suisse has issued a bearish note on the property sector prompting the likes of Land Securities, SEGRO and Hammerson to shift into reverse
Read moreLondon afternoon: Back to square one
29th Sep 2009 14:34
It's back to square one for the Footsie which is barely changed on the day, with gains on banks and insurers counterbalanced by miners and property stocks. Swiss bank Credit Suisse has issued a bearish note on the property sector prompting the likes of Land Securities, SEGRO and Hammerson to shift
Read moreLondon midday: Blue chips still struggling
29th Sep 2009 12:06
Miners and property stocks are keeping Footsie in the red despite the banking and insurance sectors going well. Swiss bank Credit Suisse has issued a bearish note on the property sector prompting the likes of British Land, Land Securities, SEGRO and Hammerson to shift into reverse. Credit Suisse's
Read moreLondon open: Dull start for Footsie
29th Sep 2009 08:51
Three-figure gains in the US overnight haven't helped London much with blue chips going lower in early dealings. Property groups are weak with all of the sector heavyweights - British Land, Land Securities and Hammerson - under pressure. Banks are offsetting some of this weakness after the Times
Read moreLondon pre-open: Stocks to creep higher
29th Sep 2009 07:39
Three-figure gains in the US overnight are set to help London add about 5 points early on, according to futures prices. A pick-up in merger and acquisition activity was behind Wall Street's advance, but much of the rally has been priced in over here already. On the companies front, contract cater
Read moreTuesday paper round-up: Barclays, Sterling, Arm
29th Sep 2009 06:18
Barclays is in talks to buy the banking division of Standard Life. The move is part of its strategy to snap up businesses while its rivals try to rebuild their balance sheets after the financial crisis. Standard Life is talking to several parties, but Barclays is understood to be the most likely b
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Cadbury, ITV, Legal & General
27th Sep 2009 19:14
Kraft Foods is poised to launch a hostile bid for Cadbury valuing the British confectionery business at around £11bn, says the Observer. Cadbury is proposing to shrink the size of its chocolate bars to disguise price rises it will be forced to make next year because of high cocoa costs. The move wi
Read moreThursday newspaper round-up: Carlyle, Barclays, Irish banks
17th Sep 2009 06:39
Carlyle has resumed deliberations about a possible public listing, people familiar with the matter say, underscoring the growing confidence of private equity firms as conditions in the financial markets improve. Any initial public offering by Carlyle would be at least six to nine months away, these
Read moreLondon close: Footsie nears 52-week high
16th Sep 2009 17:03
London raced ahead today, with the FTSE 100 crashing through the 5100 barrier near to a 12-month high, though it stopped short of racking up a triple-digit rise. Mining stocks were responsible for a large proportion of the index's rise as metals prices headed north following comments from Federal
Read moreLondon afternoon: Footsie consolidates gains
16th Sep 2009 14:30
The number of FTSE 100 constituents in the red today is in single figures as investors chase up share prices in the wake of relatively upbeat comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke last night. Bernanke said the US recession 'is very likely over at this point,' prompting an advance by gl
Read moreBarclays sells credit market assets worth $12.3bn
16th Sep 2009 13:54
Barclays is restructuring $12.3bn of credit market assets by selling them to a new fund which will buy the assets with a loan from the UK bank. Protium Finance, run by former head of Barclays Capital's principal mortgage trading group, Stephen King, and Michael Keeley, once a member of Barclays Cap
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