London close: Stocks tread water
3rd Jul 2009 17:12
A late swoon saw Footsie relinquish virtually all of its gains, with losses on resource stocks counter-balancing gains made by banks. Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland, HSBC and Lloyds Banking were the pick of the banking sector, despite chancellor Alistair Darling firing a warning about the re-eme
Read moreLondon afternoon: Banks lead the fight back
3rd Jul 2009 14:30
Share prices are creeping higher after yesterday's heavy falls, with banking stocks leading the fight back. Barclays, HSBA and Lloyds Banking lead the banking sector higher while insurers such as Aviva and Legal & General are also wanted. An exception to the general strength of insurers is Friends
Read moreLondon open: Blue chips shrug off Wall St woes
3rd Jul 2009 08:49
London has shrugged off last night's collapse on Wall Street to trade higher in the absence of traders in the US, closed for Independence Day on Friday. The Dow Jones slumped more than 200 points Thursday as the market reacted badly to awful jobs data. Banks are a strong spot, despite chancellor A
Read moreLondon close: Footsie adds 2%
1st Jul 2009 16:34
Miners were rampant Wednesday on stronger commodity prices, leaving the sector heavyweights dominating the blue chip index. There was healthy demand for gold on the metal markets, while copper also improved. The red metal headed higher following strong Chinese manufacturing data, while decreasing s
Read moreLondon afternoon: Resource stocks lead the way
1st Jul 2009 14:29
Resource stocks lead the market higher after the second half of the year got off to a good start following better than expected factory output data. The CIPS/Markit manufacturing purchasing managers' index rose to 47 in June from 45.4 the month before and a gloomy 34.9 in February. Most of the top
Read moreBroker tips: M&S, Lloyds, housebuilders
1st Jul 2009 12:46
The first quarter trading update from Marks & Spencer has pleased the market, with the food division showing its third consecutive quarter of improved performance. Singer Capital Markets, which believes the shares are fairly priced, acknowledges that first quarter sales were "considerably better" t
Read moreLondon midday: Marks sparks rally
1st Jul 2009 12:06
A well received set of results from Marks & Sparks and the strength of miners drives London higher today. Marks and Spencer's like-for-like sales fell across its major divisions in the first quarter, though total group sales were up. In the 13-weeks to June, UK like for like sales fell 1.4%, Genera
Read moreUKFI denies Bischoff to chair Lloyds
1st Jul 2009 12:01
UKFI, the body in charge of running the UK government's stake in Lloyds, has denied it is close to appointing City veteran and former Citigroup head Sir Win Bischoff as its new chairman. A report in the FT suggested Bischoff, 67, has been asked to take the job and see it through until recent acquis
Read moreBroker snap: Credit Suisse a dissenting voice on Lloyds
1st Jul 2009 11:43
The love-fest for British banks from brokers this week came to an end Wednesday when Credit Suisse cut its price target for part-nationalised lender Lloyds Banking Group. While conceding that sentiment towards the bank was improving, Credit Suisse is in no hurry to join the fan club. "Some of our
Read moreWednesday newspaper round-up: Tesco may bid for Northern Rock
1st Jul 2009 06:19
Tesco has emerged as a potential bidder for Northern Rock as the Government races to sell the state-owned lender before a general election, The Times has learnt. The supermarket chain has shown provisional interest in buying the bank nationalised as the credit crisis brought the financial system wi
Read moreLondon close: US economic data hits Footsie
30th Jun 2009 16:26
It looked like another flat day for the FTSE 100 heading into the second half of the year until shares took a sharp dive following some unappetizing economic date in the US. The US Conference Board's index of consumer sentiment fell to 49.3 in June, down from a revised 54.8 in May. Economists had b
Read moreLondon afternoon: Prices drift lower
30th Jun 2009 15:24
London continues to sleepwalk to the end of the month, with prices drifting lower in light trading after Wall Street opened in negative territory. With the oil futures contract edging steadily higher, heavy fuel users such as airline British Airways and cruise operator Carnival are on the slide. I
Read moreLloyds to slash 2,100 UK jobs
30th Jun 2009 12:40
Lloyds Banking announced it is axing another 2,100 jobs over the next three years as the part-nationalised lender continues to streamline the business following last year's takeover of rival HBOS. The group said the number is mitigated by the creation of about 350 new roles in the wholesale divisio
Read moreLondon midday: Marking time
30th Jun 2009 12:10
Leading equities are treading water on the last day of the month, quarter and half-year. Wolseley is one of the best performers after chief executive Chip Hornsby stepped down with immediate effect to let Ian Meakins take the helm at the building supplies group. Hornsby, who leaves after 27 years
Read moreLondon open: Blue chips head south
30th Jun 2009 08:54
London has opened lower despite a good showing on Wall Street overnight and interest in the banks this morning. Wolseley is the best performer as chief executive Chip Hornsby has stepped down with immediate effect to let Ian Meakins take the helm at the building supplies group. Hornsby, who leaves
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