Hughes quadruples Restaurant Group stake
17th Mar 2011 16:49
Restaurant Group non-executive Tony Hughes has invested more than £900,000 in the company. Hughes has more than quadrupled his stake in the Garfunkels and Chiquito restaurants operator to 400,000 shares He bought 308,524 shares at 294.74p a share. By buying now Hughes will receive the 7.46p a shar
Read moreLondon close: Market closes at low for the day
16th Mar 2011 17:07
An attempt at an early afternoon rally was short-lived and Footsie ended at its low for the day as investors continue to worry about the situation in Japan and sovereign debt in Europe after the downgrade of Portugal's debt by ratings agency Moody's. A sharp fall on Wall Street did not help sentime
Read moreSector movers: Alternative energy is wanted as nuclear crisis continues
16th Mar 2011 15:43
The alternative energy sector is the best performing sector for the third consecutive day, as the problems in Japan continue to have a positive effect on shares. The sector has risen almost 14% over the last week. Workers had to be evacuated from the stricken Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant after
Read moreLondon afternoon: Stocks pare losses
16th Mar 2011 14:06
Stocks pared losses over the lunch time session leaving the overall picture looking mixed, though the Footsie is slightly easier on balance, as investors continue to fret about the fall-out from the Japanese disaster, while sovereign debt concerns in Europe have been revived by the downgrade of Port
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Financial dividend payers head decline
16th Mar 2011 13:11
Financials are heading the fallers in the Footsie today. The two biggest fallers in the FTSE 100 index have gone ex-dividend. HSBC has fallen by more than double its dividend of 7.66p a share. Standard Life has not declined quite as much as its final dividend payment of 8.65p a share. HSBC and S
Read moreLondon midday: Market remains in the red
16th Mar 2011 11:50
The decline in the FTSE 100 appears to have bottomed out although there are continuing worries over the post-earthquake situation in Japan. A fire at the plant's fourth reactor sent radiation levels soaring and forced what few workers are left battling the potential disaster to retreat. Japan's Emp
Read moreHSBC Bermuda sells insurance management business
11th Mar 2011 07:02
HSBC Bank Bermuda, a subsidiary of banking giant HSBC, has sold its insurance management business to Kane Group, a provider of specialist risk and insurance management services. Kane is buying HSBC Insurance Holdings (Bermuda) Limited, HSBC Insurance SPC Limited and the insurance management busines
Read moreCredit Suisse prefers UK banks
9th Mar 2011 08:56
Credit Suisse has downgraded European banks to benchmark from a small overweight position in the second half of 2010, instead preferring UK lenders like HSBC and Barclays. It thinks Continental European banks could be hurt by an ECB policy "error" - a rate rise in April - and significant uncertaint
Read moreHSBC denies London move talk
6th Mar 2011 18:38
HSBC has rejected reports it has decided to move its headquarters from London to Hong Kong. A story in the Sunday Telegraph claimed major investors in the giant bank had been told that "a move is now more than likely". In a joint statement, the bank's chairman Douglas Flint and chief executive Stu
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: HSBC, BSkyB, Virgin Money...
6th Mar 2011 10:53
HSBC has told its biggest shareholders that it is preparing to quit London in a shock move that it said is now "more likely than not". Britain's biggest bank, which has been headquartered in the capital for 19 years, warned key investors that last week's disappointing full-year results have made ar
Read moreLondon close: Lower finish as Libya turmoil persists
4th Mar 2011 16:56
The top share index closed in the red going into the weekend as the spectre of high oil prices remerged amid continuing turmoil in Libya. Brent crude rose above $116 a barrel as the conflict in Libya continues. Government forces have been cracking down on protesters in Tripoli and there have been c
Read moreLondon afternoon: Footsie turns red
4th Mar 2011 15:19
A weak start on Wall Street has sent London to an intra-day low, with miners turning tail. US monthly non-farm payrolls were better than expected, but not by much. Investors don't look keen to open up any new positions ahead of the weekend. Mining heavyweights Rio Tinto, Anglo American and Kazakh
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Capita rises on Zurich talks
1st Mar 2011 13:39
Capita is the best performer in the footsie after the outsourcer revealed that it is in talks with insurer Zurich about performing some administrative tasks. The talks cover the UK and as well as some of Zurich's European administrative operations. Mexican miner Fresnillo is investing $800m in it
Read moreBroker tips: IAG, GKN, HSBC
1st Mar 2011 13:00
Charles Stanley upgrades its recommendation and target price for International Consolidated Airlines (IAG) as its market value has now factored in the rising prices of crude oil. Since the stock floated on 24 January, formed by the merger of British Airways and Iberia, €1.3bn has been wiped off the
Read moreBroker snap: Growth limited at HSBC
1st Mar 2011 12:00
Nomura keeps a cautious eye on HSBC as revenue growth at the global banking giant has "limited momentum". Analyst Robert Law says that "revenue growth is likely to remain challenged by continued low interest rates, lower Balance Sheet Management (BSM) revenues and the impact of the run-off of non-c
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