London close: End of road for winning run
21st Sep 2009 16:21
London's six-day rally ended Monday after banks were sold on fundraising talks and as miners retreated on weaker metal prices. Part-nationalised lender Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) was the biggest faller on reports it is mulling a share issue of between £3-4bn to reduce its dependence on the UK gov
Read moreLondon afternoon: RBS's rights plans disappoint
21st Sep 2009 14:26
Share prices are drifting lower as investors take stock following the market's recent strong run. Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is lower on reports that it is mulling a share issue of between £3-4bn to reduce its dependence on the UK government's toxic asset protection scheme (APS). Lloyds confirmed
Read moreLondon midday: Miners in a hole
21st Sep 2009 12:24
Investors took an opportunity to bank profits in what has been a quiet session for news, with miners wearing the worst of the losses. Weaker metal prices have Fresnillo, Xstrata, Kazakhmys, Vedanta and Rio Tinto deep in the red. Even Antofagasta is lower now despite a positive note from Goldman Sac
Read moreFTSE 250 movers: Northgate slips after admitting error
21st Sep 2009 11:31
Shares in van hire group Northgate are the worst performing in the FTSE 250 after it said it had overstated its debt reduction in its interim results last week. Net debts fell by £173m to £713m over the four months to August 31, not £205m to £681m as stated last week. Wellstream, which designs an
Read moreLondon open: Footsie slips in early dealings
21st Sep 2009 08:38
London's blue chips have made a sluggish start to the week with corporate activity limited to a bit of asset and balance sheet tidying up by Punch and LandSecs. Punch Taverns has bought back another tranche of convertible debt due for redemption next year, reducing the amount outstanding to just ov
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Royal Bank of Scotland, ITV, House prices
21st Sep 2009 06:25
Royal Bank of Scotland is to consider a £3bn-£4bn share issue to reduce the stake it would hand to the government for joining its toxic assets insurance scheme and has approached its biggest investors about the idea. Plans are "tentative" and Stephen Hester, RBS's chief executive, is still "putting
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Rolls-Royce, G20, Lloyds
20th Sep 2009 10:52
Rolls-Royce is fighting a last-ditch battle to stop Barack Obama axing a military-engine contract that could see it share an estimated $50bn (£30.7bn) in sales over the next two decades. The aero-engine maker was last week lobbying in Washington to prevent funding being withdrawn for its engine for
Read moreWednesday newspaper round-up: Lloyds Banking, Tullow Oil, Barclays
16th Sep 2009 06:15
The European Commission has warned Lloyds Banking Group that it may have to split off Halifax as punishment for the billions of pounds of state aid that it has received. Neelie Kroes, the Competition Commissioner, has yet to make a final decision, but banking sources say it is clear that she is pla
Read moreLondon close: Stocks gain on economic cheer
15th Sep 2009 16:40
Footsie put further distance between itself and the 5,000 point mark as the global economic outlook brightened. The US recession is 'very likely' to have ended, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said. Here, the UK Consumer Prices Index in August showed an annual increase of 1.6%, the lowest si
Read moreLondon afternoon: Weak retailers out of step
15th Sep 2009 14:18
Leading shares are consolidating the morning's gains, though retailers decline to join the party. Confusion and speculation surrounds the acquisition and fund raising intentions of general insurer RSA. Reports in today's FT suggest RSA indicated at a recent investors conference that it was looking
Read moreLondon midday: RSA's bid plans unclear
15th Sep 2009 12:11
After a quiet but tospy-turvy session the blue-chip index ended the morning in positive territory, despite the UK inflation picture not improving as much in August as expected. The UK Consumer Prices Index in August showed an annual increase of 1.6%, the lowest since level since February 2005 and do
Read moreLondon open: Flat start to anniversary day
15th Sep 2009 08:48
London has made a quiet start as the anniversary of the collapse of Lehman Brothers sparks widespread reflection on what happened, is the crisis over? and what can be done to stop it occuring again. Trading so far is quiet with little significant company news to switch the attention away from the
Read moreITV faces contract changes
15th Sep 2009 07:26
Shares in ITV dropped after the Competition Commission decided that rules on how much the broadcaster can charge advertisers cannot be removed, though it indicated it was willing to alter the terms of the broadcaster's Contract Rights Renewal (CRR) Undertakings. CCR Undertakings were given to prot
Read moreLondon close: Footsie fights back
14th Sep 2009 16:34
After toiling in the red all day, Footsie made a late push into positive territory to close above the 5,000 point mark. Miners were weak spot. Reports over the weekend suggested some commentators are concerned by the amount of speculative money that is flowing into the minerals sector. Meanwhile co
Read moreLondon afternoon: Resource stocks lose favour
14th Sep 2009 14:11
Resource stocks are friendless today as oil and metals prices shift into reverse. Reports over the weekend suggested some commentators are concerned by the amount of speculative money that is flowing into the minerals sector. Meanwhile copper prices have fallen for the fourth day in a row on over-s
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