London midday: Shares back in fashion
24th Mar 2011 12:25
Footsie burst through the 5800 barrier this morning and continued heading higher, helped by some strong updates from retailers Next and Kingfisher. Both firms made good money last year and increased their dividends accordingly. Next paraded a 9% rise in full-year profit to a new record, exactly wh
Read moreLondon open: Retailers shine in dull market
24th Mar 2011 08:12
Retailers are in focus in London, providing some badly needed interest in a market that has been sleep-walking since the Chancellor of the Exchequer stood up to give his speech yesterday. Next paraded a 9% rise in full-year profit to a new record, exactly what the City was expecting following guida
Read moreDfT reveals franchise runners & riders
24th Mar 2011 07:45
Rail and bus operators are rushing out statements celebrating being on the shortlists for the east and west coast UK rail franchises. Stagecoach Group has welcomed the announcement by the Department for Transport that its joint venture group, Virgin Rail, has pre-qualified to bid for the new West C
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 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 250 movers: JD Sports defies trend
11th Mar 2011 14:14
The FTSE 250 has fallen further into negative territory as sentiment has been shook by the devastating earthquake in Japan. JD Sports is bucking the trend however after announcing that it will not make an offer for its struggling rival JJB Sports. Sports Direct International rises in sympathy. Fir
Read moreLondon open: Footsie recovers early losses
11th Mar 2011 09:07
London is trying to stage a rally after the rout on Wall Street yesterday over the situation in Libya, sovereign debt in the eurozone and overnight a huge earthquake in Japan. Bus and train group FirstGroup remains on track to hit full-year to earnings and cash targets, but warns it's been a bumpy
Read moreLondon pre-open: Sub-5800 in sight for Footsie
11th Mar 2011 07:37
There is no respite for London as shares look set to continue their retreat as concerns mount over the situation in Libya while worries about sovereign debt in the eurozone have flared up again. City traders predict the blue-chip index will keep its head barely above the 5800 level at the outset, h
Read moreFirstGroup hit by school bus business
11th Mar 2011 07:03
Bus and train group FirstGroup remains on track to hit full-year earnings and cash targets, but it's been a bumpy journey for the school bus business. Improving trends in UK rail and American coach unit Greyhound, plus a steady performance by UK bus and transit operations, have encouraged the Aberd
Read moreNorth Sea maintenance hits Premier's volumes
13th Jan 2011 07:16
Estimated average production for Premier Oil declined in 2010 as the oil and gas producer saw increased maintenance activity in the North Sea, particularly in the second half of the year. Estimated average production for the full year 2010 was 42.8 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (kboepd
Read moreFirstGroup in gear for year
13th Jan 2011 07:13
Bus and train group FirstGroup said overall third quarter trading was in line with management expectations and it is on course to achieve earnings and cash targets for the year. However the Aberdeen-based group warned that the recent bad weather hit Bus and Rail profit by around £7m and since its i
Read moreLondon close: Company news stream fails to budge Footsie
3rd Nov 2010 16:37
There was plenty of company news for traders to digest but also uncertainty ahead of the US Federal Reserve's decision on whether to embark on more quantitative easing, resulting in a flat performance from Footsie. The leading share index slipped in line with the US ahead of the close and finished
Read moreLondon afternoon: Footsie treads water
3rd Nov 2010 14:13
London is not short of corporate newsflow to generate share price movements among the blue-chips but the net effect has been to leave the Footsie little changed. Car insurer Admiral said not much has changed since August's interim results, but that simple affirmation of recent trends was enough to
Read moreBroker tips: Astra, Admiral, FirstGroup
3rd Nov 2010 12:32
The recent share price weakness of drugs giant AstraZeneca has prompted Panmure Gordon to review the group's long-term prospects, and the broker has found plenty of "reasons to buy today". The broker notes the shares are 7.3% below the year-to-date peak in September and reckons the current share pr
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie little changed despite excitement
3rd Nov 2010 12:12
There is plenty of movement in share prices today, but with stocks moving in both directions, Footsie is little changed. Lloyds Banking's announcement of its new chief executive has attracted investor excitement. It has appointed Antonio Horta-Osorio, the head of Spanish bank Santander's UK busine
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