Broker snap: Medium term bright at Lloyds
24th Mar 2011 11:53
Lloyds has underperformed the European banking sector by 8% in the year-to-date, but Evolution Securities says that the bank remains its "top conviction buy" because - beyond short-term risks - the rewards for investors are striking. However, Evolution notes that the short-term outlook is plagued w
Read moreWednesday newspaper round-up: Budget break for first-time buyers
23rd Mar 2011 06:34
First-time buyers are to be helped on to the housing ladder as George Osborne seeks to use today's Budget to ease the pain of austerity Britain. Ten thousand people buying newly built homes will receive 20% of the cost from the Government and the builder in low-interest loans to put towards a depos
Read moreInvista Real Estate Management loses another contract
18th Mar 2011 18:29
Invista European Real Estate Trust (IERET) has terminated the investment management agreement with Invista Real Estate Investment Management's asset management subsidiary after it failed to agree to buy part of the business. The contract will come to an end on 18 September 2012. There were £463m o
Read moreLondon close: Strong end to a strong day
17th Mar 2011 16:49
London's blue chips were strong all day and boosted late on by a strong start in the US where the Dow notched up a triple-digit gain in quick time. For once, investors overlooked the ongoing bad news on the Japanese earthquake and turmoil in the Arab world to hunt out a few bargains. Heritage Oi
Read moreLondon afternoon: Shares kick on as US opens higher
17th Mar 2011 13:57
Share prices kicked on over the lunchtime session, boosted by a firm start on Wall Street, where the Dow has notched up a triple-digit gain in quick time. Though the focus remains on the aftermath of the Japanese earthquake and any response to the turbulence it has caused in the financial markets
Read moreLloyds job losses approach 27,000
17th Mar 2011 13:42
Lloyds Banking Group is cutting another 570 jobs and closing its Cheltenham & Gloucester (C&G) mortgage range. The latest losses take the number axed since Lloyds, still 41%-owned by the British taxpayer, took over rival HBOS in 2008 to 26,770. Staff within the bank's wholesale, retail, insurance,
Read moreThursday newspaper round-up: Banks, yen, oil
17th Mar 2011 06:00
Taxpayers will receive a "handsome" reward for bailing out the banks, according to the heads of Lloyds Banking Group and Royal Bank of Scotland. Yet they criticised ongoing talk of the banks being too big to fail as a "red herring". The outgoing Lloyds chief executive Eric Daniels appeared in front
Read moreSector movers: Alternative energy is wanted as nuclear crisis continues
16th Mar 2011 15:43
The alternative energy sector is the best performing sector for the third consecutive day, as the problems in Japan continue to have a positive effect on shares. The sector has risen almost 14% over the last week. Workers had to be evacuated from the stricken Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant after
Read moreTuesday newspaper round-up: Third explosion at nuclear plant...
15th Mar 2011 06:36
A third explosion rocked Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant on Tuesday and some workers were ordered to leave the site, a sign that the situation may be getting more serious. The operator of the Fukushima Daiichi complex said radiation levels around the site immediately after the blast were risi
Read moreLondon close: Shares fall back as oil rallies
9th Mar 2011 16:53
A drop in the oil price failed to gain ground as the Libya violence continued, sending shares firmly into the red. Attacks against rebel-held towns in western Libya continued, helping oil prices to win back some recent losses. Traders are worried that violence could erupt in other oil-producing Ar
Read moreLondon afternoon: Downward drift continues
9th Mar 2011 14:16
Blue-chip shares drifted lower still over the lunchtime session though a number of bright spots can be found, particularly among second liners. Insurer Prudential is in demand after saying it made 20% more in 2010 than it did the year before as Asia raced ahead of the US as the UK company's bigges
Read moreLondon midday: FTSE 100 seeking direction
9th Mar 2011 12:02
Shares are moving in both directions after updates, but the FTSE 100 sits a few points lower. Insurer Prudential is in demand after saying it made 20% more in 2010 than it did the year before as Asia raced ahead of the US as the UK company's biggest earner. Group operating profit before tax on a Eu
Read moreLondon open: Early falls despite Pru show of strength
9th Mar 2011 08:43
London has slipped lower in early dealings, despite good numbers from Prudential and a strong performance on Wall Street overnight as oil prices fell back. Insurer Prudential made 20% more in 2010 than it did the year before as Asia raced ahead of the US as the UK company's biggest earner. Group o
Read moreTwo leave as new Lloyds chief shakes up board
9th Mar 2011 07:11
New Lloyds Banking chief executive António Horta-Osório has stamped his authority with a shake-up of the retail bank and insurance divisions and the departure of two senior directors. Archie Kane, Group Executive Director for Insurance and Scotland, and Helen Weir, Group Executive Director for Ret
Read moreLibDems want bank share giveaway
7th Mar 2011 12:01
The UK taxpayer's stakes in Lloyds Banking and Royal Bank of Scotland could be given away free to the British public under proposals unveiled by the Liberal Democrats. The UK taxpayer acquired 84% of RBS and 43% of Lloyds as a result of a series of bail-outs, totalling £66bn, during the worst of th
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