London 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 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
Read moreLondon afternoon: Footsie higher as US data lifts sentiment
7th Aug 2009 14:15
Wall Street has come to the rescue with better-than-expected unemployment report lifting sentiment in London as well. US futures are now expected to start up after the Labor Department revealed data that showed job losses slowing in July to 247,000 against expectations of a fall to 320,000 and agai
Read moreLondon midday: RBS ends banks good run
7th Aug 2009 12:26
Footsie is having a tough morning with banks running into profit taking after Royal Bank of Scotland issued what it describes as a 'poor' set of numbers. RBS made a £15m profit, but bad debts rocketed to £7.5bn and it warned results may not "substantially" improve until 2011. Losses attributable t
Read moreSector movers: RBS drags back banks
7th Aug 2009 10:13
RBS is leading the banking sector lower after rounding of the latest stream of banking results by posting a small profit, but seeing bad debts soar to £7.5bn. Chief executive Stephen Hester called the results "poor" following a jump in losses attributable to shareholders to £1.04bn from £827m in 20
Read moreTechnical Analysis Snap: RBS returns to profit but shares slide
7th Aug 2009 09:17
This morning's losses announced by RBS have pricked the banking bubble of the past few days and seen the shares slide. A small pre-tax profit of £15m, excluding the write-down of goodwill and intangibles, has seen the shares fall back from Thursday's highs, but the share price was always going to f
Read moreLondon open: Banks on back foot
7th Aug 2009 08:40
London got off to a weak start following last night's losses in the US and as investors tread carefully ahead of this afternoon's US non-farm payrolls. Banks are struggling after RBS published its half-year numbers. It made a £15m profit, but bad debts rocketed to £7.5bn and it warned results may
Read moreLondon pre-open: FTSE set for reverse
7th Aug 2009 07:40
London is expected to open lower today following last night's decline on Wall Street and as investors get nervous ahead of today's big US jobs data. Futures prices indicate an early 17-point drop for the FTSE 100. US non-farm payrolls for July are due out at 1.30pm UK time. About 300,000 jobs are
Read moreRBS creeps into the black
7th Aug 2009 07:03
Royal Bank of Scotland has turned last year's big half-year pre-tax loss into a small profit, although the part-nationalised bank saw bad debts rocket to £7.5bn. Profit before tax, excluding the write-down of goodwill and other intangible assets came in at £15m for the six months ended 30 June 2009
Read moreFriday newspaper round-up: Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays, Twitter
7th Aug 2009 06:14
The Government made a £1bn paper profit on its 70% stake in Royal Bank of Scotland yesterday on growing optimism that the lender will follow Lloyds today in predicting that the worst is over for the economy. But RBS, the UK's biggest bank in balance-sheet terms, is likely to adopt a more cautious
Read moreLondon close: Financials spark good gains
6th Aug 2009 16:22
Footsie fell back in the afternoon session after the Bank of England increased its quantitative easing programme, but still finished healthily in the blue. Banks continued to rise with Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds Banking and Barclays all up. RBS reports its interim figures tomorrow. It is being
Read moreFriday preview: RBS could announce anything
6th Aug 2009 15:37
Part-nationalised bank Royal Bank of Scotland is being tipped to return to profit with a pre-tax profit of around £1.2bn, helped by gains from asset sales and buy-backs of its bonds. But there is more than the usual difference in estimates, with some reports even suggesting new chief executive Ste
Read moreSector movers: Banks dominate
6th Aug 2009 13:29
This week's well-received results from Lloyds, Barclays and HSBC continue to keep buyers active. All three are sharply higher Thursday, sending Banks to the top of the tree. Royal Bank of Scotland is also better ahead of tomorrow's interim results. Unilever has given Food Producers & Processors a
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Lloyds and RBS climb again
6th Aug 2009 09:26
Part-nationalised banks Lloyds and Royal Bank of Scotland rose again on hopes that the worst of the credit crunch write-offs have now passed. Lloyds suggested yesterday that bad debt charges for HBOS's portfolio may have peaked. RBS reports tomorrow and is is being tipped to return to profit of aro
Read moreLondon open: Stocks surge ahead
6th Aug 2009 08:53
London's top stocks charge off the blocks as financials set a fast pace in early deals. Insurer Aviva is the main riser after it cut interim dividend by 31% and announced plans for a partial IPO of its Dutch business. IFRS operating profit fell to £1.05bn for the six months ended 30 June 2009 from
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