FTSE 100 movers: Banks take a beating
26th Nov 2010 13:28
Banks continue to decline because of worries about the euro-debt crisis with Lloyds and RBS leading the way. Rio Tinto says that capital spending will probably be around US$13bn in the 18 months to December 2011. That didn't prevent the share price declining along with other miners. Centrica, whi
Read moreLondon open: Early falls for blue chips
26th Nov 2010 08:47
Losses in Asia, a lack of direction from Wall Street, where traders sat out Thursday's session for Thanksgiving, and little company news have made for a dull start. Power companies are the main point of interest after Ofgem launched a new investigation after fresh data revealed a sharp increase in
Read moreScottish Power announces price rises
19th Nov 2010 16:26
ScottishPower has become the latest energy company to announce a rise in gas and electricity prices for winter. Tariffs for 2.5m households will climb by an average of 2% for gas and by 8.9% for electricity, the power group said. Last week, British Gas (owned by Centrica) followed in the footstep
Read moreFriday tips round-up: Derwent London, Close Brothers, Centrica...
19th Nov 2010 06:40
Derwent London, the office landlord, joined the chorus of commercial property companies singing the praises of London's buoyant market yesterday. It is encouraged by the continued improvement" of the market in the heart of the capital, despite economic conditions remaining "uncertain". Rentals are
Read moreLondon open: Footsie flat after jitttery start
17th Nov 2010 09:44
Shares are flat now following a jittery start that has seen worries over Ireland take centre stage again. Over here, utility group Centrica said it had a strong third quarter, with operating profit forecasts for 2010 "slightly" ahead of current market expectations, though earnings per share will li
Read moreLondon pre-open: EU woes pose further threat
17th Nov 2010 07:28
Big losses on Wall Street last night and a mixed session in Asia don't bode well for London this morning, with further declines expected early doors. Futures prices point to a quick 14-point decline at the start of play. The Dow Jones sank 178 points Tuesday as the debt crisis situation in Europe w
Read moreCentrica enjoys strong quarter
17th Nov 2010 07:02
Utility group Centrica had a strong third quarter, with operating profit forecasts for 2010 "slightly" ahead of current market expectations, though earnings per share will likely match estimates. British Gas, which last week announced a 7% hike in bills for both electricity and gas, is still doing
Read moreLondon close: Footsie rallies to narrow losses
12th Nov 2010 16:47
Footsie recovered from an early slump to close just a few points lower as well-received company updates nearly cancelled out losses in the mining sector. Miners were big fallers on disappointment with the outcome at the G20 meeting and the possibility of a currency free-for-all. Talk that China is
Read moreSector movers: British Gas price rise cheers utilities
12th Nov 2010 14:47
There's nothing like charging your customers more to boost your shareholders' portfolios, so the utility sector is going well after British Gas owner Centrica said it will raise householders' gas and electricity bills by an average of 7% from 10 December. Mining stocks have given up a recent strong
Read moreLondon afternoon: Imagination hit by Samsung rumour
12th Nov 2010 14:27
Considering mining shares are in the dumper Footsie, though lower on the day, is faring reasonably well, after a lunch time session that saw share prices move sideways. Miners are big fallers on disappointment with the outcome at the G20 meeting and the possibility of a currency free-for-all. Talk
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Rolls-Royce recovers
12th Nov 2010 13:16
Shares in Rolls-Royce have recovered even though it will have to spend money solving the problems of the Trent 900 engine. This extra cost will hit 2010 profit. An investigation into the engine explosion on the Trent 900 powered A380 Qantas super-jumbo has found the failure was confined to one com
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie flat after recovery
12th Nov 2010 12:13
Shares are looking for direction now after staging an impressive recovery from this morning's losses. Aero-engine maker Rolls-Royce is going well despite warning solving the problems on its Trent 900 engine will mean it making less money than expected in 2010. Centrica is also higher after the Br
Read moreBritish Gas lifts prices by 7%
12th Nov 2010 09:35
British Gas will raise householders' gas and electricity bills by an average of 7% from 10 December, the utility group's owner Centrica has announced. The price change will amount to a weekly increase of £1.50 on the average bill and will affect about 8m customers on British Gas's standard and vari
Read moreLondon afternoon: Footsie returns to blue
29th Oct 2010 15:15
London has finally pulled itself back into the blue helped by a solid start on Wall Street after GDP numbers disappointed slightly. Over here, GfK NOP's consumer confidence index improved to -19 in October, confounding economists' expectations of a slide to -22 or even lower. The survey was taken b
Read moreSSE ups gas prices by 9%
29th Oct 2010 12:39
Scottish and Southern Energy has put its gas tariffs up by 9.4% just a day before the clocks go back and nights get darker. The new prices kick in from the start of December and will affect 3.6m customers. It is the first price rise by one of the 'big six' suppliers for two years and could pave t
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