London midday: Battering for blue chips
16th Nov 2010 12:16
Footsie is deep in the mire after the late swoon on Wall Street last night and concerns over the health of the entire eurozone. Miners have tanked with metals prices, while banks are still edgy over the sovereign debt situation in Ireland. Kazakhymys, Fresnillo, Xstrata, Anglo American and Antofa
Read moreLondon open: Early losses for Footsie
16th Nov 2010 08:58
Footsie has posted substantial losses following the reversal on Wall Street last night, with miners and financial groups bearing the brunt of the selling. Kazakhymys, Fresnillo, Man and Antofagasta are the worst of the fallers so far, with chip maker Arm the best of the risers. It's another hefty
Read moreeasyJet annual profits surge
16th Nov 2010 07:59
No-frills airline easyJet said full year profit surged nearly threefold on rising consumer demand and cheaper fuel. The group also announced it would pay its first dividend in 2012. For the year ended 30 September 2010 pre-tax profit surged to £154m from £54.7m the year before. This includes £27.
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Bank levy, Ireland, Easyjet...
14th Nov 2010 11:25
George Osborne is expected to make fresh concessions over his banking levy to avoid an exodus of leading international banks from Britain. HSBC and Standard Chartered have been lobbying heavily for further changes to how the levy affects their overseas businesses. But the Chancellor is standing fir
Read moreLondon close: Two-year high for blue chips
4th Nov 2010 17:01
Footsie hit a two-year high as investors piled into blue chips after yesterday's larger-than-expected stimulus package unveiled by the US Federal Reserve. But the good sentiment was not universal, with some hefty fallers on the back of disappointing trading updates. Hopes that the Bank of England's
Read moreLondon afternoon: Morning's gains consolidated
4th Nov 2010 14:23
Since the Bank of England's noon announcement extinguished the small hopes of Britain joining the US in reviving its quantitative easing programme, leading shares have marked time. Miners are still doing particularly well on hopes that the Fed's stimulus measures will help sustain the global econo
Read moreLondon midday: Market follows Man higher
4th Nov 2010 12:54
After a morning of holding its breath waiting for the Bank of England's pronouncement on quantitative easing, the admittedly small hopes that the Bank would follow the US central bank's lead and resume its asset buy-back programme were crushed by the announcement of maintenance of the status quo. N
Read moreLondon open: Shares jump after US launches second stimulus phase
4th Nov 2010 08:30
Yesterday's announcement of a second phase of quantitative easing in the US has sent shares soaring. Miners in particular are going well on hopes that the stimulus measures will help sustain the global economic recovery. BHP Billiton, Kazakhmys and Xstrata move ahead. In other sectors, Anglo-Dutc
Read moreeasyJet passengers rise to 4.6m in October
4th Nov 2010 07:54
No-frills airline easyJet said it carried 4.6m passengers in October, up 8.6% from the same period last year. The October load factor increased to 88.2% from 86.8% in 2009, making 87.1% for the rolling 12 months. easyJet carried 49.1m passengers in the 12 months, up 8.1% from the same time a year
Read moreLondon close: Footsie limps higher
11th Oct 2010 16:38
Footsie closed just a few points higher Monday after a sluggish day's trading that saw the leading share index fluctuating in a narrow range just above the zero mark. Oil services group Petrofac firmed on the back of a lucrative contract win. The government of Sharjah has appointed the company t
Read moreLondon afternoon: Stocks tread water
11th Oct 2010 14:34
The blue-chip index trod water over the lunchtime session with the majority of leading stocks consolidating the morning's gains. Oil services group Petrofac is firmer on the back of a lucrative contract win. The government of Sharjah has appointed the company to take over operational responsibilit
Read moreFTSE 250 movers: Travis Perkins on track but shares fall
11th Oct 2010 13:35
Travis Perkins' announcement this morning that the builders' merchant and Wickes' owner is on track as sales improved again in the third quarter has been given a cool reception. EasyJet got off to a good start after the budget airline said it had agreed a settlement to its acrimonious dispute with
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie crawls higher
11th Oct 2010 12:06
Footsie traded in a narrow range throughout the morning session and started the afternoon in marginally in positive territory, boosted by expectations of a moderately firm opening on Wall Street. Oil services group Petrofac is leading the market's far from vigorous advance. The government of Sharja
Read moreLondon open: Bright start fizzles out
11th Oct 2010 08:46
Early gains for Footsie have quickly fizzled out and the index is almost back where it started. Builders merchant and Wickes' owner Travis Perkins is on track as sales improved again in the third quarter. Turnover for the nine months to end of September rose 6%, driven by the merchants businesses a
Read moreLondon pre-open: Positive start likely
11th Oct 2010 07:36
Friday's rally above 11,000 on Wall Street looks enough to convince City traders to start buying this morning. The futures market points to a 20-point gain for the FTSE 100 Monday following gains in the US on hopes of additional stimulus government stimulus after weak monthly jobs numbers. In comp
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