Resolution kicks off Life consolidation project
11th Aug 2009 13:07
Friends Provident has finally succumbed to the overtures of Clive Cowdery's consolidation vehicle Resolution, but investors are already trying to guess who the insurance guru will target next. Although it took several attempts to nail the £1.86bn deal with Britain's sixth-largest life group, the f
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie struggles as banks dip
11th Aug 2009 12:07
Footsie has slipped into the red as results and takeover can't offset another day of weakness in the banking sector. Banks are weak after the FT is reported that Lloyds Banking's tentative plans to raise an estimated £15bn-£20bn in a rights issue to reduce its reliance on the government face a wall
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Banks slide on cash call scepticism
11th Aug 2009 11:06
Banks are weak after the FT is reported that Lloyds Banking's tentative plans to raise an estimated £15bn-£20bn in a rights issue to reduce its reliance on the government face a wall of scepticism in Whitehall and among investors. Royal Bank of Scotland is also lower. Power generator International
Read moreLondon open: Solid start for blue chips
11th Aug 2009 08:26
London's blue chips have opened stronger than expected higher on a couple of decent results and the confirmation of Friends Provident's and Resolution's tie-up. Clive Cowdery's insurance investment vehicle Resolution will be catapulted into the FTSE 100 index after life insurer Friends Provident ac
Read moreLondon pre-open: Small gains ahead
11th Aug 2009 07:35
London's top stocks look set to open marginally higher with traders expecting Footsie to add 5 points in early trading. Clive Cowdery's insurance investment vehicle Resolution will be catapulted into the FTSE 100 index after life insurer Friends Provident accepted a new £1.86bn bid on Tuesday. Fr
Read moreTuesday newspaper round-up: Lloyds, JJB, BAE Systems
11th Aug 2009 06:16
Lloyds Banking's tentative plans to raise an estimated £15bn-£20bn in a rights issue to reduce its reliance on the government face a wall of scepticism in Whitehall and among investors. Lloyds last week floated the idea that the terms of its participation in the government's asset protection scheme
Read moreLondon close: Struggling Footsie finishes lower
10th Aug 2009 16:41
Footsie fought to lift itself into the blue all day but remained in the red as banks and miners weigh on the index. Lloyds Banking, which is apparently mulling a £15bn fundraising to keep down the cost of insuring toxic debt with the Government, fell. Reports in the weekend press suggest the Treasu
Read moreLondon afternoon: Stocks still softer
10th Aug 2009 15:01
The Footsie continues to trade lower, but in a narrow range as weaker banks and miners easily offset gains among the insurers. Lloyds Banking is apparently mulling a £15bn fundraising to keep down the cost of insuring toxic debt with the Government. Reports in the weekend press suggest the Treasury
Read moreLondon midday: Banks drift drags Footsie lower
10th Aug 2009 12:03
Banks are leading the Footsie lower amid talk that Lloyds is mulling a fund raising. Weekend reports said Lloyds Banking may raise up to £15bn from the stock market to keep down the cost of insuring toxic debt with the Government. The Treasury is understood to back the bank's tentative plans to ra
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Friends talks boost shares
10th Aug 2009 11:17
Life insurer Friends Provident is leading the risers after saying it is now is close to agreeing a takeover by Resolution after the terms of the original offer were improved. In a statement, Friends Provident confirmed it had received a new offer of 0.9 Resolution shares for each Friends Provident
Read moreLondon open: Footsie heads lower
10th Aug 2009 08:50
London has opened lower with reports of Lloyds looking at a big cash call overshadowing bid talks restarting between Friends Provident and Resolution. Life insurer Friends Provident says it is now is close to agreeing a takeover by Resolution after the terms of the original offer were improved. In
Read moreLloyds mulling £15bn cash call
10th Aug 2009 08:18
Lloyds Banking is said to be mulling another huge cash call to reduce the costs of signing up to the government's toxic asset protection scheme (APS). The bank, which is 43% owned by the UK government, has already tapped shareholders a number of times recently, but management is said to be concerne
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Rio Tinto, Lloyds Banking, Resolution
10th Aug 2009 06:10
China has accused Rio Tinto of spying on its steel industry for six years, costing the country Rmb700bn ($102bn) in excessive charges for iron ore. The remarks, contained in an editorial in the magazine of the National Administration for the Protection of State Secrets, indicate that Beijing's det
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Lloyds Banking, JJB, Friends Provident
9th Aug 2009 09:44
Lloyds Banking is weighing up plans for a multi-billion pound share issue to cut its dependency on the taxpayer. The bank is considering a partial withdrawal from the government's asset protection scheme. Eric Daniels, the chief executive of Lloyds, is said to believe the fees attached to the schem
Read moreLondon close: Footsie ends week on a high
7th Aug 2009 16:16
Some better-than-expected jobs data hauled Footsie into the blue Friday afternoon, ensuring the leading share index continued its rally. The Labor Department said 247,000 jobs disappeared in July, far less than the 320,000 predicted by analysts and almost half the 467,000 reported in June. RBS rem
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