London close: Deficit narrows
11th May 2010 16:34
Losses halved during the afternoon session as it looked increasingly likely the Liberal Democrats will jump into bed with the Conservative party and form a coalition government. Buyers nibbled at weak miners and banks, down sharply earlier on doubts about the €750bn Eurozone bailout plan. Kazakhmy
Read moreLondon close: Shares slide after election
7th May 2010 16:48
Shares continued sliding on Friday as the European debt crisis rumbled on and after the previous day's election failed to produce a decisive result. Germany's parliament has approved a rescue package for Greece, but traders are still worried that the debt problems could spread to other countries, i
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Capita slumps on public spending worries
7th May 2010 16:37
Footsie is well down on the day as worries about a hung parliament spook the markets. There has been a late rally but it remains much lower. Outsourcing specialist Capita has been hit by downgrades on the back of worries about public spending. Royal Bank of Scotland is sharply lower even though
Read moreLondon afternoon: RBS leads retreat
7th May 2010 14:35
The market rally seen towards the end of the morning session fizzled out over lunch as London joined other European markets in retreat. Prime Minister Gordon Brown has moved into line with Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg and agreed that the Conservative party, which won the most seats in yesterd
Read moreLondon midday: Clegg statement calms markets
7th May 2010 12:10
After initially reacting negatively to the prospect of a hung parliament London's leading shares have rallied after Liberal Democratic party leader Nick Clegg said he is sticking with his pre-election view that the party with the most votes - in this case the Conservatives - should have first crack
Read moreHSBC enjoys 'very good' start to 2010
7th May 2010 09:44
HSBC raced to the top of the FTSE 100 after saying it had a 'very good' start to 2010 that was well ahead of the same quarter the previous year. The bank's personal financial services and commercial banking divisions accounted for most of the improvement, HSBC said, with the global banking and mark
Read moreLondon close: Greece pulls Footsie down again
6th May 2010 16:43
Footsie ended the day sharply lower as Greece's problems reared up again and investors fretted about the outcome of today's election. Banks were hit hard as ratings agency Moody's warned that the UK lenders are "at risk of Greek contagion". Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland, HSBC and even Asia-foc
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Banks lead market down
6th May 2010 15:33
Banks are leading Footsie downwards after ratings agency Moody's warned that the UK lenders are "at risk of Greek contagion". Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds, HSBC and even Asia-focused Standard Chartered fell sharply after Moody's said banks in the UK, as well as in Ireland, Italy, Portu
Read moreLondon afternoon: Banks throw a Moody
6th May 2010 14:16
Footsie's morning gains evaporated over the lunch time session as fears over the debt crisis spreading from Greece reared up again. Banks were hit hard as ratings agency Moody's warned that the UK lenders are "at risk of Greek contagion". Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland, HSBC and even Asia-focus
Read moreFriday newspaper round-up: Mervyn King, BP, Essar Energy
30th Apr 2010 06:33
The Governor of the Bank of England was at the centre of an electoral storm last night after saying that the austerity measures needed to tackle Britain's budget deficit would be so unpopular that whoever wins next week would not get back into government for a generation. Mervyn King's opinion, rev
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks off the bottom
28th Apr 2010 12:13
Blue-chips are beginning to recover their poise, helped by demand for heavyweight oil stocks in the wake of better than expected results from Shell, and a positive reaction to results from Glaxo, released at noon. Higher oil prices helped Royal Dutch Shell post a sharp rise in earnings in the first
Read moreFSA raps knuckles of UK banks
28th Apr 2010 09:49
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has found evidence of what it terms 'unacceptable standards' in the way some British banks handle complaints, and has instructed five unnamed UK banks to make changes to their customer complaints procedures as a result. Two of the five banks face possible fine
Read moreMonday's newspaper round-up: Tesco, Goldman Sachs, Gartmore
26th Apr 2010 06:32
Tesco, the supermarket chain, plans to develop four "mini-villages" in the South East along with "mixed-use living and leisure" schemes in Ipswich and northeast England. The schemes feature scores of homes, all near a Tesco store. The plans raise the prospect of people finding a home in a "mini-vi
Read moreLondon open: Air travel woe dominates
19th Apr 2010 08:46
Travel problems continue to dominate the market with the UK flight ban extended to tomorrow at the earliest. More than 100,000 customers of TUI Travel due to return home yesterday were left stranded by the ongoing flight ban imposed after the eruption of the volcano in Iceland last week. Currently,
Read moreLondon close: Footsie at 22-month high
15th Apr 2010 17:12
The afternoon saw many leading shares consolidate or extend the morning's gains, solidifying the Footsie's position above 5800. Banks led the advance after better than expected results from US investment bank JP Morgan yesterday. Barclays received a boost from Execution Noble, which raised its targ
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