Rio Tinto bribery case in hands of Chinese prosecutors
11th Jan 2010 12:43
Four Rio Tinto staff being held in China on charges of industrial espionage could face prison sentences after their case was handed over to prosecutors today. Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade say they've been told by the Chinese authorities that the investigation phase is over an
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie loses some sparkle
11th Jan 2010 11:38
Footsie has lost some sheen as miners and property groups have given back some of their early gains. Brokers have been busy with a Citigroup review of the oil sector boosting Cairn Energy. The broker says that fast-tracking the multiwell exploration drilling programme in Greenland has made the grou
Read moreLondon open: Another bright start
11th Jan 2010 08:49
London's top stocks have opened strongly with good gains for resource stocks sending the index sharply higher. Cairn Energy leads the oil sector, while demand is strong for Rio Tinto, Kazakhmys and Fresnillo among the miners. Silver miner Fresnillo has also dropped out of the race for Canadian mini
Read moreBroker tips: Ryanair, miners, Halfords, Man
8th Jan 2010 13:10
Commerzbank has reiterated its hold stance of no-frills airline Ryanair with a target price of €3.50 after an update on the group's long-term strategy. The German broker says that following the cancellation of the large Boeing order at the end of last year Ryanair will concentrate on optimising yie
Read moreBroker snap: UK miners still have the edge
8th Jan 2010 09:19
With an insatiable appetite for commodities that has scarcely been dulled by the global economic crisis, it is unsurprising that China should seek to have a hand in their production. However, while the east Asian economic powerhouse is stepping up its investment in mining projects, UK miners are st
Read moreBroker tips: Miners, Tate & Lyle
7th Jan 2010 14:32
Cazenove remains ‘overweight’ on the mining sector and expects some aggressive increases to consensus EPS forecasts for 2010. Last year was a ‘tremendous’ one for mining stocks and the broker believes some favourable, ‘albeit slightly tired themes’ remain, like BRIC economic growth, infrastructure
Read moreBroker snap: Caz still backs miners
7th Jan 2010 10:20
Cazenove remains 'overweight' on the mining sector and expects some aggressive increases to consensus EPS forecasts for 2010. Last year was a 'tremendous' one for mining stocks and the broker believes some favourable, 'albeit slightly tired themes' remain, like BRIC economic growth, infrastructure
Read moreThursday newspaper round-up: Cadbury, British Airways, Banks
7th Jan 2010 06:14
Cadbury has prompted further talks with Hershey in recent days about the possibility of a merger designed to derail Kraft's £10.4 billion hostile bid to buy the UK chocolate-maker. However, it is understood the conversations between the boards of the two companies have been limited and that Cadbury
Read moreLondon close: More gains for FTSE 100
6th Jan 2010 16:34
It was another day of gains for the FTSE 100 after the leading share index hauled itself into the blue in afternoon trading. Marks & Spencer was among the stocks dragging Footsie lower and finished firmly in the red. It was not the numbers from the fashion and food retailer that upset the market s
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: M&S update disappoints
6th Jan 2010 14:07
Two stocks stand out in the FTSE 100. Fashion and food retailer Marks and Spencer has fallen after reporting strong Christmas trading while sounding caution on 2010 prospects. But data search and interpretative software specialist Autonomy is the top riser after saying it expects to report 2009 re
Read moreLondon afternoon: Leading shares mixed
6th Jan 2010 13:50
The list of Footsie constituents is now almost evenly split between risers and fallers but the blue-chip index remains in negative territory, weighed down by Marks & Spencer, which remains out of favour after a disappointing trading update. It was not the numbers from Marks & Spencer that upset th
Read moreLondon midday: No sparks from Marks
6th Jan 2010 11:52
Leading shares were attempting their second rally of the morning as the lunchtime session started, but almost two-thirds of FTSE 100 constituents remain in the red. Chief among them is M&S. The cold weather may have seen woolly jumpers and slippers fly off the shelves at Marks & Spencer in the days
Read moreLondon open: Dull start as big freeze bites
6th Jan 2010 08:49
It's all about the retailers in the pre-opening session as the post-Christmas trading update season moves into full swing with Marks & Spencer heading lower after its update. The cold weather may have seen woolly jumpers and slippers fly off the shelves at Marks & Spencer in the days before Christm
Read moreLondon close: Dull day for blue chips
30th Dec 2009 16:44
Footsie closed near its low for the day after banks and miners turned down on very low volumes ahead of a short day's trading tomorrow. A flat start on Wall Street didn't help, but it was Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays and Standard Chartered that led the the banks down while miners Fresnillo, Rio
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks slip lower
30th Dec 2009 11:43
Tops stocks are lower with two of the bigger sectors of the market weighing. Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays and Standard Chartered are down amongst the banks while miners Fresnillo, Rio Tinto, Lonmin and Anglo American also fall. Petrofac, the oil services firm, is outperforming after news of
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