London open: Footsie rebounds from six-month low
21st May 2012 08:40
- G8 summit fails to lift sentiment as euro worries persist - Chinese stimulus speculation does the rounds - Man Group surges early on Despite an underwhelming G8 summit at the weekend, London's blue chip index opening slightly higher on Monday morning after slumping to its lowest levels since mid-
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Break-up, France, Bailouts
21st May 2012 07:16
When it comes to contingency planning for a Eurozone break-up, it is typically a German company that has been ahead of the game. Industrial conglomerate Siemens acquired a banking licence in December 2010. That allowed it to access directly European Central Bank funds, so cutting its exposure to swi
Read moreHSBC completes sale of New York branch network
21st May 2012 07:15
Global banking group HSBC has completed the sale of 195 US retail branches to First Niagara Bank, first announced in July last year. HSBC's wholly-owned subsidiary, HSBC Bank USA, received $0.9bn for the branches (based on figures at April 30th 2012), primarily in upstate New York. The sales is pa
Read moreFriday newspaper round-up: Northern Rock, HSBC, Euro
18th May 2012 07:24
British taxpayers could suffer a 2bn pound loss on Northern Rock but it should be seen as the cost of securing financial stability, according to the National Audit Office. The Government's spending watchdog said the Coalition was correct to seek an early sale of the nationalised lender, which result
Read moreHSBC sweet-talks investors
17th May 2012 10:49
HSBC, 'the world's local bank', is turning into ... er ... just a big bank as it executes its strategy of focusing on regions that offer the sexiest growth prospects. HSBC has issued an update of its huge restructuring. So far Britain's biggest bank has sold or exited 28 businesses since the beginn
Read moreThursday broker round-up
17th May 2012 09:36
African Barrick Gold: Goldman Sachs upgrades from sell to neutral. Amlin: Nomura maintains neutral rating and 383p target. Aviva: Shore Capital downgrades from buy to hold; Nomura keeps buy rating and 600p target. Babcock: Liberum Capital downgrades from buy to hold. Brammer: Westhouse Securitie
Read moreLondon close: Footsie sets new 2012-low on Greek concerns
14th May 2012 16:27
- Footsie closes at levels not seen since mid-December - Potential Greek exit from euro hammers stocks - Banks, miners the worst performers in London The FTSE 100 closed at its lowest levels in the year-to-date on Monday as investors speculated about what a disorderly exit of Greece from the Eurozo
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie down nearly two per cent on Greek uncertainty
14th May 2012 11:51
- Risk-off as Greek exit speculation weighs on sentiment - Eurozone finance ministers to focus on Greece, Spain and growth - Banks, miners lead the fallers on the Footsie The FTSE 100 index traded broadly sideways in morning trade, holding on to the steep losses seen in the opening hour on the back
Read moreLondon open: Stocks sink on Greek exit speculation
14th May 2012 08:33
- Political uncertainty in Greece, Germany weighs on sentiment - Officials consider Greek euro exit - Banks, miners drag on the FTSE 100 European equity markets were a sea of red on Monday morning as continuing concerns over the political situation in Greece fuelled a sell-off early on. The Footsie
Read moreLondon pre-open: Sharp decline expected on Greek woes
14th May 2012 07:28
City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open down 51 points from Friday's close of 5,576, despite strong gains in Asia over China's decision to lower the reserve requirements for banks by 50 basis points. Investors are likely to continue feeling concerned over events in Greece, where it is currently
Read moreHSBC finds buyer for 62 Latin American branches
14th May 2012 07:00
HSBC, which styles itself as the world's local bank, is to become a bit less local in parts of Latin America following the agreed sale of its operations in Colombia, Peru, Uruguay and Paraguay. HSBC is selling the businesses for $400m in cash to the Colombian banking entity controlled by the Gilins
Read moreLondon close: US sentiment data sparks late rally
11th May 2012 16:36
- US consumer sentiment at post-recession high - Banks weighed down by JP Morgan surprise trading loss - Miners pressured lower by Chinese data After a weak start, the FTSE 100 surged in afternoon trade on the back of some upbeat consumer sentiment data Stateside which helped to offset gloomy econo
Read moreLondon midday: Banks and miners weigh on Footsie
11th May 2012 11:56
- Chinese economic figures weigh on mining stocks - JP Morgan trading loss dents UK banks - UK factory gate inflation eases less than expected A surprise trading loss from US banking giant JP Morgan, weaker-than-expected Chinese economic data and ongoing concerns about the Eurozone weighed on senti
Read moreLondon open: Chinese data, JP Morgan weighs on stocks
11th May 2012 08:28
- Chinese industrial output, inflation data disappoints - Spain to ask for EFSF support, according to reports - JP Morgan surprise trading loss causes concerns The FTSE 100 fell sharply in early trading on Friday as weak Chinese data, Spanish concerns and a surprise trading loss from JP Morgan Chas
Read moreLondon pre-open: Small rise expected ahead of BoE interest rate
10th May 2012 07:39
City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open up 15 points from yesterday's close of 5,530 ahead of the Bank of England's interest rate announcement, due out this morning. The figure is widely expected to remain at the same level and no expansion of the quantitative easing programme is predicted. Fu
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