HSBC posts flat profit short of consensus
22nd Feb 2016 07:16
(ShareCast News) - HSBC has missed full year profit consensus forecasts by 8%, as it missed fourth quarter targets by a long way. The FTSE 100 bank posted a reported profit before tax of $18.9bn (£13.3bn) for the year to 31 December 2015, up a mere 1.069% from $18.7bn in 2014. However adjusted prof
Read moreTuesday newspaper round-up: BoE, car industry, Shell, HSBC
16th Feb 2016 07:14
(ShareCast News) - The Bank of England has rebuffed criticism from the chief architect of the UK's banking reforms by denying that it has watered down his recommended minimum capital levels for Britain's biggest lenders. In a statement released late on Monday the BoE rejected that it had gone soft o
Read moreMonday broker round-up
15th Feb 2016 18:27
(ShareCast News) - Hargreaves Lansdown: Shore Capital upgrades to buy. Antofagasta: Peel Hunt Limited downgrades to hold with a target price of 425p. Atkins: Citigroup upgrades to neutral with a target of 1160p, from 1120p. Hays: HSBC upgrades to buy with a 155p target. IAG: Bank of America upgra
Read moreLondon open: Stocks jump after China sets higher value for the yuan
15th Feb 2016 08:20
(ShareCast News) - Stocks jumped out of the gate after China's central bank set a higher daily reference value for the country's currency, with central bank chief Zhou Xiaochuan talking about the need for patience in balancing reform, growth and stability, as well as China's need to remain a respons
Read moreLondon pre-open: Stocks to start higher, tracking gain in yuan, Nikkei-225
15th Feb 2016 07:54
(ShareCast News) - The Footsie was being called to start the session sharply higher, with sentiment buoyed by gains in stocks overnight in Tokyo and last Friday, on Wall Street. To many investors' relief, the People's Bank of China set today's fixing for the country's currency, the yuan, 0.3% higher
Read moreHSBC to keep HQ in UK; warns on 'Brexit'
15th Feb 2016 07:10
(ShareCast News) - Banking giant HSBC said it had decided to retain its headquarters in the UK, adding that it could shift 1,000 wholesale operation jobs to France if Britain voted to leave the European Union later this year. Chief executive Stuart Gulliver told Sky News: "We have 5,000 peo
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Bank funding, North Sea oil tax, HSBC, Anglo
14th Feb 2016 17:39
(ShareCast News) - The European Central Bank and its London counterpart have held talks after the Bank of England raised the alarm over the potential threat of a funding crisis in the banking sector. Three senior London bankers have told the Sunday Times that their normal efforts to raise money from
Read moreHSBC backtracks on pay freeze
11th Feb 2016 13:15
(ShareCast News) - HSBC backtracked from a decision announced earlier in the week to freeze pay after some employees pushed back. In a memo sent to staff on Thursday the lender's boss, Stuart Gulliver, said not everyone would obtain a raise, although those who had won one as part of their annual pay
Read moreThursday newspaper share tips: Steer clear of banking sector
11th Feb 2016 11:35
(ShareCast News) - The Telegraph's Questor wasn't so hot on the UK banking sector as it published an in-depth look into it on Thursday The column noted that shares in the sector have fallen over 20% so far this year, due to fears about how it would cope in another downturn. It said there is an elem
Read moreHSBC cancels plans for 2016 pay freeze
11th Feb 2016 10:23
(ShareCast News) - HSBC has reportedly made a U-turn on its planned 2016 pay freeze. A memo from chief executive Stuart Gulliver, seen by Reuters on Thursday, said pay rises will be funded from the lender's 2016 variable bonus pool, meant for bonuses paid in 2017. However, HSBC will keep its hiring
Read moreTuesday newspaper round-up: HSBC, Osborne, Google, stamp duty
9th Feb 2016 07:12
(ShareCast News) - HSBC is leaning towards keeping its headquarters in London after 10 months of agonising debate reflecting a reversal of the previous stance of chief executive Stuart Gulliver. In private meetings over the past few weeks, Mr Gulliver has played down the case for leaving the UK, acc
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: HSBC, Glencore, easyJet
7th Feb 2016 20:18
(ShareCast News) - HSBC's board is expected to come to a decision on the location of its headquarters in the coming days after an unexpectedly long-running review of the future of the British-based bank. Bosses launched the review last year and initially expected to reach a conclusion by the end of
Read moreHSBC imposes hiring and pay freeze
1st Feb 2016 11:07
(ShareCast News) - HSBC froze pay and hiring at its consumer and investment banking units as part of its plans to cut as much as $5bn from its cost base by the end of 2017, Bloomberg reported citing a spokesperson for the lender. The decision, which was announced to staff on 29 January, followed an
Read moreHSBC defends cyber attack
29th Jan 2016 12:18
(ShareCast News) - HSBC customers suffered disruptions to online banking on Friday due to a cyber attack. The lender said it had successfully defended the attack but services were affected on what is a payday for many and two days ahead of a key deadline for paying tax. Sunday is the last day for f
Read moreBroker tips: PZ Cussons, Vodafone, UK banks
26th Jan 2016 13:06
(ShareCast News) - PZ Cussons has achieved a "solid" first half given the challenges, according to Investec. The consumer goods company reported a 0.2% dip in reported revenue to £385.9m in the first half due to foreign exchange headwinds. Pre-tax profit fell 3.7% on a reported basis to £42.1m. The
Read more