Tuesday newspaper round-up: HSBC, Supermarkets, Pets at Home
9th Jun 2015 07:01
HSBC is to cut up to 25,000 jobs around the world - including as many as 8,000 in the UK - as its chief executive, Stuart Gulliver, embarks on a fresh strategy to reduce costs and bolster returns to shareholders. Gulliver has already cut the total head count to 257,000 from 296,000 but on Tuesday si
Read moreLondon pre-open: FTSE to continue lower amid Greece fears
9th Jun 2015 07:01
London-listed stocks were expected to begin Tuesday's session on the back foot, extending losses into their fourth day. City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open around 9-10 points lower than Monday's close of 6,790.04. "The fact that we're seeing technical support levels [across Europe] being br
Read moreHSBC targets $5bn in annual cost savings by 2017
9th Jun 2015 06:19
HSBC on Tuesday announced a round of job cuts and branch closures with the aim of saving between $4.5bn to $5bn in annual costs by 2017. Branches in seven major markets including the UK will be closedUp to 25000 jobs set to goStrategic aim is to expand Asian footprintIn a statement issued to the Hon
Read moreUK bank levy change would benefit StanChart the most, says SocGen
8th Jun 2015 09:30
Commenting on a Sunday Times report that George Osborne is to lay the groundwork for a review of the bank levy, Societe Generale said that Standard Chartered was likely to be the biggest beneficiary. SocGen explained that the current method of calculation puts UK banks at a disadvantage when operati
Read moreOsborne to discuss review on bank levy in this week's mansion house speech
7th Jun 2015 13:15
The Chancellor is set to this week outline the government's commitment to ensuring the ongoing "competitiveness" of banks. George Osborne is expected to on Wednesday use the annual Mansion House speech to pave the way for a review of the bank levy in a bid to prevent major lenders from moving their
Read moreHSBC fined £27.8m in Swiss money-laundering probe
4th Jun 2015 15:04
HSBC has been fined £27.8m by Swiss authorities over money-laundering claims related to the bank's Swiss division. The fine, the biggest ever imposed by the Geneva court, described the FSTE 100 group as guilty of "organisational deficiencies" which allowed money laundering to take place. The city's
Read moreLondon pre-open: FTSE set for slight drop amid default fears, weaker Asia
2nd Jun 2015 07:08
Weak trading in Asia overnight and mounting concerns about a Greek default look set to nudge the top tier index into negative territory at Tuesday's opening bell. City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open around 8-9 points lower than Monday's close of 6,953.58. Making headlines early on is HSBC,
Read moreHSBC set to cut thousands of jobs globally, media reports say
2nd Jun 2015 07:01
HSBC is reportedly planning to cut thousands of jobs across its global workforce as it tries to reassure shareholders that its focus on costs remains undiminished after a series of reputational crises. According to Sky News, HSBC's chief executive Stuart Gulliver will set out a revised target for he
Read moreTuesday newspaper round-up: Greece, British American Tobacco, HSBC
2nd Jun 2015 06:41
Greek banks are at "five minutes to midnight", Germany's Bundesbank has warned, raising the prospect of capital controls to stem a haemorrhage of deposits if the government cannot strike a deal with creditors imminently. Andreas Dombret, an executive board member of the German central bank, urged ne
Read moreCiti sees 40% return on European equities to end-2016
1st Jun 2015 10:50
European shares are set to 'deliver' as economic recovery in the euro area gains traction and given that valuations are not currently expensive, contrary to what some observers say, a leading broker argued on Monday. In a research note entitled "El Toro - the European bull" analysts at Citi highligh
Read moreBroker tips: HSBC, Intertek, ICAP, Non-life insurers
28th May 2015 11:36
UBS has maintained a 'neutral' stance on HSBC ahead of the bank's strategy update on 9 June, saying that management is unlikely to deliver what is needed. HSBC's Asian franchise is the bank's "jewel in the crown", UBS said, but it faces substantial challenges over the next few decades as Hong Kong i
Read moreUBS predicts underwhelming strategic update from HSBC next month
28th May 2015 11:02
UBS has maintained a 'neutral' stance on HSBC ahead of the bank's strategy update on 9 June, saying that management is unlikely to deliver what is needed. HSBC has already signalled that its strategic update will be evolutionary rather than revolutionary, but UBS reckons that it is probably the latt
Read moreWednesday broker round-up
27th May 2015 07:57
Beazley: JP Morgan upgrades to overweight from neutral and sets 308p target, up from 255p. Hiscox: JP Morgan upgrades to overweight from neutral and ups target to 950p from 801p. Lancashire Holdings: JP Morgan improves target price to 642p from 589p, stays at neutral. Dixons Carphone: Exane keeps
Read moreLondon close: Stocks hit two-week high as blue chips rise
22nd May 2015 16:36
UK stocks reached a two-week high on Friday on the back of decent performances from heavyweights Vodafone and HSBC, along with gains in defensive categories such as pharmaceuticals. Markets across Europe were struggling to push higher on concerns about Greece, while Wall Street opened in the red on
Read moreStart-up British banks seeing better returns than larger rivals, says KPMG
22nd May 2015 13:35
New 'challenger' banks are outperforming the 'Big Five' high street banks, and the larger lenders need to examine better ways of standing out in the market, according to a report by KPMG. The reported said that new banks in the UK are securing stellar returns, as they pick up "the whitespace left be
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