London midday: Back to square one
23rd Mar 2011 12:24
Footsie ended the morning more or less where it started it, as investors sit tight ahead of the Budget speech at 12:30pm. Resource stocks are in demand, with ENRC sitting atop a buoyant mining sector and Cairn leading oils higher. Underlying profits more than doubled last year at Kazakhstan-based
Read moreLondon open: Market unsettled as Sainbury's disappoints
23rd Mar 2011 09:00
Budget days are normally quiet, but supermarket giant J Sainsbury's slightly disappointing trading update has unsettled the mood. Caution ahead of today's speech by the Chancellor will also be keeping some on the sidelines. Supermarket giant Sainsbury's grew like for like sales by slightly less th
Read moreBP raises $575m from Colorado gas sale
23rd Mar 2011 07:44
BP has sold its 93% interest in the Wattenberg, Colorado natural gas processing plant for $575.5m (£352m) as it continues its programme of asset disposals after the Macondo, Gulf of Mexico, oil spill and rig disaster. Anadarko, its partner in the ill-fated Macondo well is buying the gas plant for c
Read moreWednesday tips round-up: Cairn Energy, Xaar...
23rd Mar 2011 06:54
Cairn Energy moved to a pre-tax profit of $577m (£352m) last year, against a small loss in 2009. Cairn also reported progress in Greenland, where it is conducting a widely watched exploration campaign. The group said the offshore-Greenland programme has "the potential for transformational growth".
Read moreBP sells storage and pipeline assets
18th Mar 2011 16:18
Buckeye Partners is paying BP $225m for fuel storage and pipeline assets plus the oil giant's 50% stake in its Inland Corporation pipeline joint venture in Ohio. The assets include 33 refined products terminals and 992 miles of pipelines in the US. Inland owns 350 miles of active pipeline and 259
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Japan, Bahrain, Tullett Prebon...
14th Mar 2011 06:33
An explosion rocked Japan's earthquake-damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant on Monday, escalating the emergency at the 40-year-old facility north of Tokyo. The blast, captured by television cameras, appeared to have occurred at the plant's No. 3 reactor building, where combustible hydrogen had b
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Japan, Kaupthing, RBS...
13th Mar 2011 10:17
Japan's giant car industry has announced a major shutdown as fears grow over the economic impact of Friday's devastating earthquake and subsequent tsunami which has crippled much of the north-east of the country. The three largest motor manufacturers - Toyota, Honda and Nissan - said they would sto
Read moreLondon close: Japan gloom stifles rally
11th Mar 2011 16:41
The devastating earthquake in Japan this morning overshadowed today's trading but shares struggled to climb into the blue and finished just a few points short. The tsunami resulting from the earthquake has already killed a large number of people in Japan, with police in the port of Sendai reporting
Read moreLondon afternoon: Rally runs out of steam
11th Mar 2011 14:29
An attempt at continuing the late-morning rally fizzled out over the lunch time session, but prices are not as soft as might be expected given the array of bad news out there, such as the Japanese earthquake, the Libyan situation and the continuing concerns about European sovereign debt. The insura
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: BP's ethanol buy
11th Mar 2011 12:49
BP is lower after it announced the $680m (£421m) acquisition of a Brazilian ethanol producer. BP has moved to improve its green credentials with the purchase of Companhia Nacional de Açúcar e Álcool (CNAA). The acquisition is the oil giant's biggest ever in the alternative energy sector. Insurer P
Read moreLondon midday: Japan earthquake casts shadow
11th Mar 2011 12:21
The earthquake in Japan is casting a shadow over trading today and the FTSE 100 sits just a few points above 5,800 now. The insurance sector has been hit by worries over the possible effects of the Japan earthquake. Aviva, Legal & General and Prudential are suffering losses. The damage caused by th
Read moreBP acquires Brazil biofuels group for £421m
11th Mar 2011 09:15
BP has moved to improve its green credentials with the purchase of Brazilian ethanol and sugar producer Companhia Nacional de Açúcar e Álcool (CNAA) for $680m (£421m). The acquisition is the oil giant's biggest ever in the alternative energy sector. BP, whose reputation for environmental friendlin
Read moreThursday newspaper round-up: European bonds, gilts, BP
10th Mar 2011 06:01
Political paralysis in Brussels and monetary tightening by the European Central Bank has set off a fresh spasm of the eurozone bond crisis, pushing spreads on Portuguese, Irish and Greek bonds to post-EMU records. Portugal edged closer to the brink yesterday, having to pay almost 6pc to raise two-y
Read moreFriday newspaper round-up: ECB, BP, Glencore...
4th Mar 2011 06:37
The European Central Bank stunned markets yesterday as it warned that it may raise interest rates from emergency levels as soon as next month to combat inflation. Jean-Claude Trichet, its president, effectively called time on almost two years of ultra-loose policy, saying that an "increase of inte
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Libya, Oil, HSBC...
27th Feb 2011 11:08
The International Energy Agency, the adviser to developed nations, said this weekend it was ready to dip into emergency stockpiles if the upheaval in the Middle East and North Africa affects oil supplies for a "prolonged" period. Libya shut down 850,000 barrels of production last week ? about 1% of
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