London open: Rally continues as updates impress
13th May 2011 08:32
Stocks have continued a rally that began ahead of the close yesterday, helped by a good performance on Wall Street last night and some well received company news. In company news, oil services group Petrofac says it is "increasingly confident" that it will deliver profit growth in line with previou
Read moreStobart hits back at property deal claims
13th May 2011 07:29
Distribution group Stobart has issued a strongly-worded statement denying a "speculative" story in the Daily Telegraph that alleges that the Financial Services Authority (FSA) is examining a deal that will see Stobart buy a property portfolio from its chief executive. The article says that the FSA
Read moreLondon close: Shares end week on a high
21st Jan 2011 16:59
London's leading share index went into the weekend on a high after falls the previous two days. Royal Bank of Scotland led the top share index higher after the FT reported that bank executives and officials at the Treasury are talking about ways for the bank to exit the toxic asset scheme. After
Read moreLondon afternoon: Miners lead revival
21st Jan 2011 14:35
After yesterday's triple-digit fall the Footsie has clawed back around half of those losses, helped by a strong performance from miners. Weather conditions in Australia have improved enough to allow Rio Tinto to end the force majeure event that's disrupted supplies of aluminium from Boyne Smelters
Read moreLondon open: Footsie recoups losses
21st Jan 2011 08:53
London's leading shares have claw backed a small proportion of yesterday's heavy losses, encouraged by the late rally on Wall Street yesterday. Royal Bank of Scotland is leading the way forward after the FT reported that bank executives and officials at the Treasury are talking about ways for the
Read moreWeather costs Stobart £1.5m
21st Jan 2011 07:24
Snow and ice on Britain's roads before Christmas has cost logistics group Stobart about £1.5m, although it's still on track to meet reduced profit expectations for the year. The company, famous for its fleet of green-liveried Eddie Stobart lorries, says its performance continues at a rate "signific
Read moreThursday tips round-up: Sports Direct, Eddie Stobart, Bunzl
21st Oct 2010 06:49
Sportswear retailing has long had something of a Wild West reputation, marred as it is by feuds, backbiting and the odd run-in with the law. Tuesday's announcement by the Serious Fraud Office that it was no longer pursuing a cartel inquiry against Sports Direct and JJB Sports may go some way to salv
Read moreLondon close: Footsie shrugs off spending cuts
20th Oct 2010 16:51
A strong performance on Wall Street breathed life back into Footsie after the leading share index suffered a weak spell following the Compehensive Spending Review (CSR). One sector to give the CSR the thumbs up was bus companies such as Stagecoach, Go-Ahead, FirstGroup and National Express. The sub
Read moreLondon afternoon: Shares drift lower
20th Oct 2010 14:21
Shares turned south over the lunchtime session though it is difficult to ascribe any of the losses to the impact of the Comprehensive Spending Review, much of which was widely as expected. Mining stocks are doing their bit to counteract the effects of Footsie stalwarts BAE Systems, Smiths Group and
Read moreBroker snap: Stobart one for the long haul
20th Oct 2010 12:53
Killik remains confident in Stobart Group's long-term growth despite the broker's near-term earnings forecasts being downgraded 8%. The interim results from the transportation, logistics and warehousing company for the half year revealed an 11.7% rise in revenue to £243.7m and pre-tax profit from c
Read moreLondon midday: Shares sit higher ahead of Spending Review
20th Oct 2010 12:39
Shares are still sitting in the blue as trader's prepare themselves for chancellor George Osborne's Comprehensive Spending Review. The leading share index moved into positive territory after minutes from the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee meeting earlier this month showed that one memb
Read moreLondon open: Nervous wait for spending review
20th Oct 2010 08:54
An overnight slump on Wall Street has made for a muted start as investors wait for minutes from the Bank of England's last policy meeting and the government's spending review. The coalition's Comprehensive Spending Review is fully expected to be a bloodbath, but the City will want clear evidence th
Read moreRail and VAT prompt Stobart to lower forecast
20th Oct 2010 07:51
Logistics group Stobart has cut its profit expectations for this year to the bottom of the market's range and is wary over prospects for 2011. "We have slightly reduced our full year profit expectations as a result of reduced spend by Network Rail and increased overall finance costs. We are also ca
Read moreStobart and Aer Arann in Southend airport tie-up
11th Oct 2010 08:17
Logistics firm Stobart Group is poised to accelerate development of Southend Airport in Essex after signing a five year operating agreement with Irish regional airline Aer Arann. As part of the overall investment agreement with others, Stobart Group will invest €2.5m to incentivise and market Aer A
Read moreLondon close: Five month high for FTSE 100
5th Oct 2010 16:37
An uncertain start to the day was a distant memory by trading's close as shares surged following a strong start in the US, helping Footsie hit its highest levels in five months. US stocks were boosted by better than expected growth in service companies in the world's biggest economy in September. T
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