Sector movers: Rio Tinto drags mining lower
23rd Dec 2010 13:23
Rio Tinto is among the stocks dragging on the mining sector after increasing its offer for Riversdale Mining to A$16 a share in cash, securing the backing of management for a deal worth A$3.9bn (£2.5bn). The mining giant admitted earlier this month it had talked to the Sydney-based firm, which has
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Retailers recover
23rd Dec 2010 12:36
Retailers are recovering on hopes that the last two days trading before Christmas could be a bumper time in the high street. Kingfisher and Next have recovered a portion of their losses earlier in the weak. Chip designer ARM has been hit by profit taking. Miners are also slipping back with Xstrat
Read moreLondon open: Assault on 6,000 begins
23rd Dec 2010 08:15
Blue chips have had a first stab at hitting the magic 6,000 level following gains in the US overnight and are regrouping after falling just one point short. Insurer Old Mutual is among the early winners, followed by Sainsbury's and Kingfisher, but ARM is giving back a little of yesterday's big gain
Read moreLondon pre-open: Footsie closing in on 6,000
23rd Dec 2010 07:44
It's looking touch and go whether the Footsie index will open above 6,000 this morning with City traders suggesting the blue-chip index will open around 16 points higher, just 1 point short of the 6,000 level. Rio Tinto has increased its offer for Riversdale Mining to A$16 a share in cash, securing
Read moreRio Tinto ups Riversdale bid to £2.5bn
23rd Dec 2010 07:13
Rio Tinto has increased its offer for Riversdale Mining to A$16 a share in cash, securing the backing of management for a deal worth A$3.9bn (£2.5bn). The mining giant admitted earlier this month it had talked to the Sydney-based firm, which has interests in African coal, about a A$15 a share takeo
Read moreRio Tinto close to talc unit sale
20th Dec 2010 08:21
Mining heavyweight Rio Tinto has nearly sold its talc business, Luzenac, to France's Imerys for up to €500m (£420m). It's thought the pair are in advanced talks, though Rio is yet to grant Imerys exclusivity on the deal for the unit, responsible for around 20% of global demand for talc. Rio has a
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Bank bonuses, snow, BSkyB
20th Dec 2010 06:30
George Osborne and Vince Cable will today pile pressure on senior bankers by threatening tax rises and further regulations if they go ahead with another bumper round of bonuses. The Chancellor and the Business Secretary are meeting the chief executives of the five largest banks ? the Royal Bank of S
Read moreFriday tips round-up: RPC, Rio Tinto, DS Smith...
17th Dec 2010 06:57
RPC Group has spent ten years wooing Denmark's Superfos Industries but has finally won the day after its rival agreed to a £205m takeover. Making soup containers for Waitrose and coffee capsules for Nespresso machines may have all the hallmarks of a defensive stock. But the Superfos deal has turned
Read moreRio Tinto could get over $500m for Cloud Peak
16th Dec 2010 07:44
Rio Tinto will get at least US$2bn for Rio Tinto Energy America after its secondary offering of Cloud Peak Energy shares was priced at around $½bn. The miner is selling 25.6m Cloud Peak shares at US$19.50 each to raise gross proceeds of $499.2m. Underwriters also have an option to pick up an extra
Read moreBroker tips: Rio Tinto, Reckitt Benckiser, Xchanging
13th Dec 2010 13:58
Nomura's 2011 forecasts for Rio Tinto are ahead of consensus as the broker expects average realised iron ore prices to rise substantially more. The broker sees supply growth limited to 9% as increasing shortages of skilled labour and environmental issues continue to delay large expansion projects,
Read moreBroker snap: Rio to benefit from rising iron ore prices
13th Dec 2010 11:44
Nomura's 2011 forecasts for Rio Tinto are ahead of consensus as the broker expects average realised iron ore prices to rise substantially more. The broker sees supply growth limited to 9% as increasing shortages of skilled labour and environmental issues continue to delay large expansion projects,
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Wellstream, BHP Billiton, Whitbread...
13th Dec 2010 06:26
Millions of families are struggling to pay their bills ? and the number is likely to increase in the new year, according to analysis from the Bank of England. The report published today shows that two fifths of households have difficulty from time to time or constantly in meeting their monthly bil
Read moreLondon close: Footsie clings to lead
9th Dec 2010 16:40
A weak morning session on Wall Street did London no favours Thursday, although the big banks helped the leading index to only its second close above 5,800 in over three weeks. Barclays, Lloyds and Royal Bank of Scotland were top of the pile. HSBC also did well, but fellow Asia-focused player Stand
Read moreLondon afternoon: Banks help index advance
9th Dec 2010 14:42
A mostly better banking sector, gains for some of the mining heavyweights and a decent start on Wall Street are offsetting losses among the big retailers. Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays are going well following a good session in overseas markets, though Asia-focused Standard Chartered
Read moreLondon midday: Shares steady as Bank holds rates
9th Dec 2010 12:13
The midday announcement that interest rates and quantitative easing will remain unchanged surprised no one and shares remain little changed. Banks and miners are going well. Platinum specialist Lonmin, copper miners Antofagasta, Kazakhmys and ENRC are also in demand, as are the Australian iron ore
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