London open: Oil spike lifts Footsie
16th Oct 2009 08:45
Footsie has opened stronger helped by an improvement on Wall Street last night and strong demand for oil stocks after a spike in crude prices. National Express, though, is the main talking point. The price has crashed by more than a quarter as investors face the prospect of a hefty rights issue af
Read moreLloyds axes 460 as Halifax estate agency sold for £1
16th Oct 2009 07:40
Lloyds Banking is to cut 460 jobs including 360 permanent positions following the sale of Halifax Estate Agencies to rival LSL property for just £1. LSL will take over Halifax Estate Agency's assets and liabilities, which operates through a network of 218 branches, including 93 franchise operations
Read moreFriday newspaper round-up: National Express, Goldman Sachs, Lloyds
16th Oct 2009 06:17
The Spanish-led consortium bidding for National Express is set to withdraw its £765m takeover offer for the bus and rail operator, dealing a blow to the company's biggest shareholder. CVC, the private equity firm, and the Cosmen family, which owns an 18.5% stake, had been due to finish due diligenc
Read moreLloyds in talks to sell private client assets to Rathbone
15th Oct 2009 09:19
Lloyds Banking Group today confirmed it is in talks to sell some non core private client discretionary investment management activities to Rathbone Brothers. The bank, 43%-owned by the taxpayer, said the assets were currently part of its wealth and international division, mainly the Bank of Scotlan
Read moreThursday newspaper round-up: Lloyds, Northern Rock, BA
15th Oct 2009 06:28
The UK government will not underwrite Lloyds Banking Group's planned rights issue, potentially complicating the bank's push to raise enough capital to avoid the controversial asset insurance programme. The government, which owns 43.5% of Lloyds, is expected to participate in the planned rights iss
Read moreWednesday newspaper round-up: Royal Bank of Scotland, Vauxhall, Tesco
14th Oct 2009 06:20
Royal Bank of Scotland is exploring a government-backed plan to give up all of its 312 RBS-branded branches in England and Wales, in a radical move to satisfy Brussels state aid authorities. Officials close to the negotiations say the plan - mediated by the Treasury - is well advanced and is the fa
Read moreLloyds in talks to sell estate agencies business
13th Oct 2009 17:09
Cash hungry bank Lloyds Banking Group has confirmed it is in talks to offload its Halifax Estate Agencies business. LSL Property Services, which owns the estate agecy brands your Move, Reeds Rains and Intercounty, has expressed an interest in buying the estate agencies business of Lloyds which it i
Read moreLondon close: Retailers weigh on Footsie
13th Oct 2009 16:46
A poor performance from US shares dragged Footsie into the red and the leading index finished the day with substantial losses. Retailers were out of sorts despite some moderately optimistic news from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) concerning retail sales. The BRC said annual retail sales growt
Read moreLondon afternoon: Retailers sag after sales data
13th Oct 2009 14:26
Leading shares remain mixed, with the Footsie easing back into the red over the lunchtime session. Retailers are out of sorts despite some moderately optimistic news from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) concerning retail sales. The BRC said annual retail sales growth in September accelerated to
Read moreSector movers: Mining updates lift sector
13th Oct 2009 13:33
Mining stocks are currently one of the best performing sectors, helped by some well received updates and strong metals prices. Among the strong performers is copper specialist Kazakhmys which has sold a 25% stake in its Ekibastuz GRES -1 power plant for $339m (£215m) in cash and is in talks about a
Read moreLondon midday: Looking for direction
13th Oct 2009 12:14
The Footsie has crawled into positive territory, helped by miners recovering from their weak opening. Kazakhmys is the pick of the sector after revealing it is in talks with the China Development Bank and JSC Sovereign Wealth Fund Samruk-Kazyna regarding a potential corporate loan facility of aroun
Read moreLondon open: Footsie in the red
13th Oct 2009 08:35
Stocks have fallen in early trade, with miners aiding the decline and as investors wait nervously for a flood of results from the US. Miners Randgold, Lonmin, Antofagasta and Rio Tinto are lower on weaker metal prices. But Whitbread was hot property, adding more than 3% after it reported an impro
Read moreTuesday newspaper round-up: ITV, Lloyds Banking, Dyson
13th Oct 2009 06:17
The multi-billion-pound self-certification mortgage industry, in which customers are not required to provide proof of income, is set to be banned by the financial regulator. The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is effectively planning to kill off self-cert home loans by introducing a rule compell
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Index hits year-high
12th Oct 2009 11:31
Footsie hit a new 12-month high as buyers continue to shrug off concerns about the recent market rally being too far, too fast. Insurers are the best performers led by Old Mutual. Platinum specialist Johnson Matthey, another South African-focused group, is also going well. Lloyds Banking is the w
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: JJB Sports, Lloyds Banking, Punch Taverns
11th Oct 2009 11:16
JJB, the sportswear giant, claimed last night that it was the target of an elaborate hoax designed to sabotage a £100m fundraising plan and wreck the reputation of its chairman. The allegations were so serious that the retailer was forced on Friday to postpone the rights issue because it believed "
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