Credit Suisse: 50% chance of US debt rating downgrade
27th Jul 2011 14:16
Credit Suisse said there is a 50% possibility of a ratings downgrade of the US sovereign debt even if the debt ceiling is raised by the deadline on August 2 but expects the move to have low impact. The brokerage firm played out two alternative scenarios, saying an extended period of no rise in the
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks still stuck lower
27th Jul 2011 12:03
The top share index nestles slightly in negative territory, perhaps waiting for US trading to start before striking into the blue. Energy supplier Scottish & Southern Energy is suffering after going ex-dividend. Meanwhile, sector peer Centrica also fell, albeit by a lesser extent, after utilities
Read moreOfgem fines British Gas £2.5m
27th Jul 2011 10:32
Ofgem slapped a £2.5m fine on Centrica's British Gas after the UK energy regulator found that the company had failed to deal with customer complaints properly. An investigation led by Ofgem found that UK's largest household energy supplier failed to re-open unresolved customer complaints and did n
Read moreLondon open: SSE leads the fallers in early trading
27th Jul 2011 08:31
The top share index saw a sharp decline in early trading, as the debt crisis in the US continues to weigh on market sentiment. Energy supplier Scottish & Southern Energy was the heavy faller, tumbling 4.85% after going ex dividend. Meanwhile, sector peer Centrica also fell lower, albeit by a les
Read moreBroker tips: Centrica, Howden Joinery, Beazley
22nd Jul 2011 12:19
Credit Suisse recommends to buy UK energy giant Centrica at current levels, saying that its full-year earnings estimates are ahead of consensus, reflecting its bullish view on supply margins within British Gas Residential Energy (BGRE). In regards to BGRE, Credit Suisse forecasts a top-of-the-rang
Read moreBroker snap: Centrica to 'outperform', says Credit Suisse
22nd Jul 2011 11:32
Credit Suisse recommends to buy UK energy giant Centrica at current levels, saying that its full-year earnings estimates are ahead of consensus, reflecting its bullish view on supply margins within British Gas Residential Energy (BGRE). "Regardless of whether Centrica's growth projects (nuclear an
Read moreScottish & Southern lifts gas and electricity tariffs
21st Jul 2011 07:05
Scottish & Southern Energy has become the latest of the "big six" utility groups to warn of higher tariffs, saying it will increase household electricity prices by an average of 11% and household gas prices by 18% from 14 September. The company, which has more than 10m customers in Scotland and cen
Read moreBritish Gas lifts prices by 18%
8th Jul 2011 10:46
British Gas, which is owned by the FTSE 100 firm Centrica, will increase domestic gas and electricity prices by an average of 18% and 16% respectively from 18 August. The move had been expected following Scottish Power's announcement in June that it will increase gas prices by 19% and electricity p
Read moreOfgem slaps £1m on Centrica's British Gas
1st Jul 2011 14:08
Energy regulator Ofgem slapped a £1m penalty on British Gas, a unit of Centrica, for misreporting the amount of electricity supplied under the government's renewables obligation. Ofgem said the error was caused by incorrect representation of the reporting requirements and insufficient procedures b
Read moreNo change to Centrica guidance
28th Jun 2011 08:20
Centrica, the UK energy giant, has continued to trade in line with guidance provided in its May interim management statements. The group confirmed that earnings for the first half of 2011 are expected to be lower than in 2010. This is in line with previous guidance but the causes are interesting.
Read moreWednesday newspaper round-up: Greece, energy companies, women on bank boards
22nd Jun 2011 06:03
European leaders have been urged to scrap plans for a second Greek bail-out - as the Athens government wins a critical vote of confidence in parliament. Leading London-based think tank Open Europe has claimed that a fresh bail-out, expected to be around €120bn (£106bn), will almost triple taxpayers'
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Insurers dominate the risers
7th Jun 2011 15:34
UK insurance buyout firm Resolution is the pick of the bunch today, after announcing its plans to return £500m of excess cash to shareholders. Citi has reiterated its 'buy' recommendation on the stock, saying that - given lower asset and debt leverage - "the Resolution business should be at a premi
Read moreThursday newspaper round-up: Glencore, Southern Cross, Morrisons
2nd Jun 2011 06:06
Newly listed commodities trader Glencore has been barred from borrowing from the European Investment Bank (EIB) because of "serious concerns" about how the company is run. The bank, the lending arm of the EU, yesterday said it had frozen all new loans to the Switzerland-based group which floated in
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Outsourcers improve on gains
31st May 2011 14:44
Serco, the outsourcing company whose activities include running prisons and London's Docklands Light Railway, has announced the acquisition of India-based service provider Intelenet for up to £385m, boosting shares higher on Tuesday. Prime Markets thinks that the purchase will "safely propel" Serco
Read moreGermany's nuclear exit positive for renewables
31st May 2011 10:39
Germany's decision to exit all of its nuclear power plants marks a clear win for renewable energy, according to Matrix, which highlights a number of UK companies that could benefit. The German government have announced that it will close all 17 nuclear plants in the country by 2022, aiming to repla
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