London open: Blue chips lower on mixed results
4th Aug 2010 08:40
London has made a quiet start after a decline on Wall Street overnight and mixed trading statements this morning. Lloyds is very much back in the black after posting a profit of £1.6bn for the first half of 2010, twice as much as some analysts had forecast. The bank, which lost almost £4bn this tim
Read moreLondon pre-open: Stocks to pull back
4th Aug 2010 07:30
Early losses look likely in London this morning as investors react to a decline on Wall Street overnight. Futures prices currently indicate a 22-point decline for the FTSE 100 when trading starts shortly. Lloyds is very much back in the black after posting a profit of £1.6bn for the first half of
Read moreLloyds returns to profit in style
4th Aug 2010 07:04
Lloyds is very much back in the black after posting a profit of £1.6bn for the first half of 2010, twice as much as some analysts had forecast. The bank, which lost almost £4bn this time last year and is still 41%-owned by the government, added that total impairments more than halved to £6.5bn from
Read moreWednesday newspaper round-up: Interest rates, Egg, BP
4th Aug 2010 06:34
Interest rates may have to rise far more sharply than households and markets expect as the Bank of England moves to head off inflation risks, the former deputy governor said yesterday, the Times reports. Sir John Gieve told a City of London audience that solid economic growth could prompt the Bank
Read moreWednesday preview: Lloyds Banking, Legal & General, Next
3rd Aug 2010 15:26
The UK government is showing a paper profit on its 41% stake in high street banking giant Lloyds and should have further cause for celebration when the bank unveils profits for the first half of the year on Wednesday. Expectations are for Lloyds to declare pre-tax profits in excess of £800m, a shar
Read moreLondon afternoon: Fire sale at BP continues
3rd Aug 2010 14:14
After yesterday's dramatic rise London is taking a pause for breath today and either digesting the steady stream of big company results already out this week or preparing for results from the giants of the insurance and banking sectors later this week. Insurance colossus Aviva , scheduled to releas
Read moreSantander nears RBS branch buy
3rd Aug 2010 11:40
Spanish bank Santander is expanding its overseas empire with the acquisition of 318 branches being sold by government-owned Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). The sale, thought likely to make about £2bn, is part of a deal agreed with the European Commission as RBS's punishment for borrowing billions fro
Read moreLondon close: Footsie fights back
3rd Aug 2010 09:28
Footsie fought hard to finish in the blue after easing back following yesterday's surge, and was just a whisker short of positive territory at trading's close. An improvement on Wall Street after a shaky start breathed life into London's leading share index. Insurance colossus Aviva , scheduled to
Read moreSector movers: HSBC kicks off banks' results with a bang
2nd Aug 2010 15:19
The banking sector has jumped on soaring profits from HSBC. It gave a signal that the banking sector may be returning to normality after the credit crisis as it posted interim profits that more than doubled on the back of a sharp reduction in bad debts. In the half year to June 30, the bank saw pre
Read moreLondon open: Strong start for Footsie
2nd Aug 2010 08:53
Banks and miners are in favour this morning, helping Footsie make a bright start. The banks' interim results season kicks off later today with HSBC's first half figures and predictions at the weekend were for strong numbers across the sector. Lloyds, Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland are all hig
Read moreBanks chided again on small cap lending
1st Aug 2010 18:34
Britain's banks have again been warned over bonuses and lending to small and medium-sized firms (SMEs) with the top four tipped to post over £8bn in collective first half profits this week. In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, UK chancellor George Osborne said the the government would not tol
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Bank profits, BP, ITV
1st Aug 2010 11:59
Royal Bank Of Scotland could break back into the black this week, boosting hopes that taxpayers could make a profitable exit from the government's bank bailouts. Analysts expect RBS to post a pre-tax profit of about £200m for the first six months of the year, ending a two-year run of multi-billion
Read moreFinancial News: Banks Seize EUR50B Of Private Equity-Backed Cos
1st Aug 2010 00:01
By Toby Lewis Of FINANCIAL NEWS Banks are finally getting tough with private equity. They have taken control of almost EUR50 billion ($65 billion) of private equity-backed companies in Europe since the beginning of 2009 as a result of those companies defaulting on their debt. This activi
Read moreEARNINGS PREVIEW:UK Banks 1H Good On Charges, Hit By Mkt Woes
29th Jul 2010 15:24
By Patricia Kowsmann Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES TAKING THE PULSE: U.K. banks will likely report higher pretax profit for the first half of the year on lower impairment charges, although investment-banking activities could disappoint following a shaky second quarter, analysts say. "Overall, t
Read moreMetro Bank Opens Its Door In Bid To Change Face Of UK Banking
29th Jul 2010 11:28
By Patricia Kowsmann Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES LONDON (Dow Jones)--Metro Bank PLC, the brainchild of U.S. entrepreneur Vernon Hill, opened its first branch Thursday in a bid to become a major player in the U.K., but banking experts said its success will depend on how much emphasis customers wi
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