London open: Early improvement
10th Nov 2009 08:33
UK shares have started to edge higher after an initial pause as investors weigh up a flood of results from some of the country's biggest companies. Schroders leads the way following a smaller than expected 19% drop in third quarter profit. The fund manager made a profit before tax and exceptional i
Read moreLondon pre-open: Moderately firmer start seen
10th Nov 2009 07:44
London is expected to open moderately firmer against a background of a busy company results scene. The FTSE 100 is expected to open up around 11 points higher at 5,246. Mobile phone network Vodafone traded in line with expectations during the first half of its fiscal year, raising revenue by over
Read moreRates still under pressure at InterContinental
10th Nov 2009 07:18
International hotels group InterContinental Hotels continued to see revenue per available room (revPAR) slide in the third quarter. RevPAR in the third quarter of 2009 fell 15.2% at constant currency rates. Things improved a tad after the end of the reporting period with October seeing a 13.5% dec
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Bradford & Bingley, Northern Rock, BA
26th Oct 2009 06:25
Bradford & Bingley is to divide its £50 billion balance sheet into "good" and "bad" assets in an exercise that echoes similar plans at Northern Rock. B&B, which was broken up and partly nationalised a year ago, is looking for attractive assets that it can sell to private buyers, says the Times. The
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Vedanta buoys miners
8th Oct 2009 12:17
Miners are higher after Vedanta said zinc, copper and aluminium operations were at full capacity during the second quarter as it revealed a 16% rise in refined zinc production and a 27% surge in iron ore output. Other risers from the sector include Kazakhmys, Antofagasta, Eurasian Natural Resources
Read moreLondon close: Sainsbury leads retreat
7th Oct 2009 17:03
After yesterday's 2.26% gain on the Footsie the blue-chip index took a small step backwards today, with half an eye on the US market where the third quarter results season is about to get underway. Supermarket chain Sainsbury was the worst performing blue-chip as sales growth figures disappointed.
Read moreLondon afternoon: Weak Wall St. undermines Footsie
7th Oct 2009 14:48
A soft opening by Wall Street prompted London's blue chips to take a step back, though plenty of firm features are still to be found. Supermarket Sainsbury's is off a few points after a 4.6% rise in like-for-like sales excluding fuel in the quarter to 3 October came in lower than expected. Exclud
Read moreBroker tips: InterContinental Hotels, Michael Page, Dunelm
7th Oct 2009 13:07
Ahead of results due on 10 November, brokers have been turning their attention to Holiday Inn owner InterContinental Hotels and are seeing signs of a recovery in the business travel market. Broker Panmure Gordon said the relaunch of the Holiday Inn has been driving a turnaround in the fortunes of I
Read moreBroker snap: Group bookings reviving at InterContinental
7th Oct 2009 12:39
Ahead of results due on 10 November, brokers have been turning their attention to Holiday Inn owner InterContinental Hotels and are seeing signs of a recovery in the business travel market. Broker Panmure Gordon said the relaunch of the Holiday Inn has been driving a turnaround in the fortune of In
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie trades sideways
7th Oct 2009 12:06
Footsie has traded sideways all morning with traders cautious after yesterday's surge in share and commodity prices. Predictions of a quiet start on Wall Street have added to the low key mood. Supermarket Sainsbury's is off a few points after a 4.6% rise in like-for-like sales excluding fuel in the
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Intercontinental buoyed by bullish brokers
7th Oct 2009 11:19
Intercontinental Hotels is the best performer on a quiet day on some bullish broker comment. Broker Panmure Gordon said the relaunch of the Holiday Inn has been driving a turnaround in the fortunes of InterContinental, which slipped into the red in the first half of the year. The broker is now ex
Read moreLondon afternoon: Market in holiday mood
9th Sep 2009 14:22
Footsie made an assault on the 5,000 level over the lunchtime session but fell short, as investors took note of expectations of a flat start on Wall Street. With mergers and acquisition activity back on the agenda British Airways is in demand on hopes of a swift conclusion to its team-up with Spani
Read moreLondon close: Footsie clings on to gains
8th Sep 2009 17:01
Leading London shares closed mixed, with strong gains on resource stocks counter-balanced by losses on life assurance stocks. Kazakhmys, Antofagasta, Rio Tinto, Xstrata and Vedanta Resources led the mining sector higher, as metal prices improved. Gold miners Fresnillo and Randgold Resources were
Read moreLondon afternoon: Holiday stocks take flight
8th Sep 2009 13:56
After opening brightly London's leading shares have been treading water since the middle of the morning. Kazakhmys, Antofagasta, Rio Tinto, Xstrata and Vedanta Resources lead the mining sector higher, as metal prices improve. Gold miner Randgold Resources is wanted after the price of gold bullio
Read moreWednesday tips round-up: Intercontinental Hotels, Greggs, NWF
12th Aug 2009 06:50
Intercontinental Hotels, which runs the Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza chains, released its second-quarter results yesterday, saying that revenue was down, revenue per available room (a key measure in the industry) was down and it had recorded a loss of $82m after last year's $145m profit. If you wan
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