London midday: Footsie maintains lead
25th Nov 2009 12:09
Stocks are steady at lunchtime Wednesday as miners remain firmly on the front foot, while bid speculation is behind big gains at International Power. The hot money is on International Power at the moment, with investors betting that French utility GDF Suez will bid £6bn, or 400p-a-share, for the el
Read moreLondon close: Four-day rally is over
17th Nov 2009 16:31
The leading index finished near its worst levels of the session as weaker banks and mining heavyweights brought a 4-day winning streak to an end. The dollar's bounce off Monday's 15-month low hurt metal prices. Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said last night that the Fed will conduct policy i
Read moreCentrica nails Br Energy deal as EC clears EDF buy
13th Nov 2009 07:51
Centrica is free to complete its purchase of a 20% stake in British Energy from Electricité de France (EDF) following the European Commission's decision to clear EDF's purchase of the UK group's Belgian business, Segebel. The acquisition of the British Energy holding had been approved by the Office
Read moreFriday newspaper round-up: British Airways, Lloyds Banking, Tesco
13th Nov 2009 06:08
British Airways and Iberia, the Spanish flag carrier, have announced a deal to create Europe's largest airline. The merger by the two loss-making companies is expected to set off another round of cost-cutting at both to save £360m a year. Jobs are likely to be lost at head offices in London and Ma
Read moreLondon close: Footsie retreats after new high
12th Nov 2009 17:00
Footsie hit a new intra-day high for the year in mid-afternoon, but buyer interest tailed off near the close as US markets retreated on a mild resurgence by the dollar. British Airways was the top performer after the airline confirmed it is holding meetings with Spanish airline Iberia to discuss th
Read moreLondon afternoon: Footsie hits new 2009 peak
12th Nov 2009 15:21
Footsie has hit a new intra-day high for the year as the majority of blue-chips head higher. British Airways is the top performer after confirming that it is holding meetings with Spanish airline Iberia to discuss the possibility of a merger. 'The British Airways and Iberia boards are holding sepa
Read moreLondon midday: FTSE flat
12th Nov 2009 12:05
It is back to square one for Footsie, which is virtually unchanged on the day despite a warm reception to results from BT and confirmation from British Airways that the long awaited merger with Iberia is close to consummation. British Airways has confirmed that it is holding meetings with Spanish a
Read moreLondon open: BT turns Footsie blue
12th Nov 2009 08:32
Shares are inching higher in early deals as investors welcome second quarter results from BT, offsetting losses among insurers following results from Friends Provident owner Resolution. Telecoms giant BT reported second quarter revenue was in line with expectations and thinks it can cut costs by at
Read moreLondon pre-open: Lower start expected
12th Nov 2009 07:38
Footsie is expected to slip back slightly in early dealings following good gains yesterday. Telecoms giant BT has reported second quarter revenue in line with expectations and thinks it will generate at least £1.6bn of free cash flow this year versus its old target of over £1bn. Revenue for the thr
Read moreCentrica makes up for slump in gas output
12th Nov 2009 07:02
Centrica is trading as expected, with the gas supplier's lower effective tax rate and strong performance from the UK downstream business offsetting a drop in gas production and profitability. Gas production fell 50% in the third quarter from the same time last year and is expected to be down by abo
Read moreLondon close: US sparks late rally
5th Nov 2009 16:21
A smaller than expected increase to the Bank of England's quantitative easing programme and and early surge on Wall Street helped Footsie overcome early losses and close in the blue. The central bank voted to pump an additional £25bn into the economy, taking QE to £200bn. It also kept interest rate
Read moreLondon afternoon: Footsie climbs into blue
5th Nov 2009 14:13
A smaller than expected increase to the Bank of England's quantitative easing (QE) programme and stronger US futures have hauled London into the blue. The central bank voted to pump an additional £25bn into the economy, taking QE to £200bn. It also kept interest rates at 0.5%. "The fact that the M
Read moreLondon midday: BoE expands QE programme
5th Nov 2009 10:41
London's top stocks are trading quietly after their initial fall as investors mull the Bank of England's decision to extend its quantitative easing programme by a further £25bn to £200bn. Telecoms group Cable & Wireless has dropped after it revived plans to split itself in to two parts. The announc
Read moreLondon open: Shares start lower
5th Nov 2009 08:17
London's top stocks opened lower in line with the weaker trend seen in the afternoon session on Wall Street and losses overnight on Asian markets. The market has much to occupy itself ahead of the announcement later today of the Bank of England's decision on whether to extend its quantitative easi
Read moreLondon pre-open: Footsie on the back foot
5th Nov 2009 07:36
The blue-chip index is set to open in negative territory, following the weaker trend seen in the afternoon session on Wall Street and losses overnight on Asian markets. Traders expect the FTSE 100 to open around 42 points lower. The market has much to occupy itself ahead of the announcement later
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