Sunday newspaper round-up: Vodafone, Tesco, BP
10th Jun 2012 17:11
Britain's banking regulator is to be handed major powers to influence the way the country's largest lenders are run as part of a reform package to be announced this week by George Osborne. The Chancellor will effectively drop the case for major reform of the UK's largest banks and say that much of t
Read moreWeek Ahead: Tesco and Sainsbury square up
8th Jun 2012 10:01
Next week will see another instalment in the battle between supermarket giants Sainsbury and Tesco, as both issue trading updates. Broker Jefferies thinks Tesco's first quarter update, out on Monday, should confirm group sales growth of 2.6%, or nearly 4% excluding foreign exchange effects. Tesco
Read moreFriday tips round-up: Vodafone, Whitbread, Supermarkets
8th Jun 2012 06:56
In the Telegraph, Questor makes a compelling case for buying Vodafone. Impressive cash generation offers a current yield of 8.5 per cent while the shares trade at just 10 times earnings. Vodafone has also announced a sensible joint venture with O2's parent company, Telefonica, to share infrastructur
Read moreFriday broker round-up - UPDATE
1st Jun 2012 09:16
SAB Miller: Credit Suisse reiterates outperform; Societe Generale upgrades to buy from hold, while raising target to 2,800p from 2,600p. ITV: Investec downgrades to sell from hold, lowers target to 60p from 90p. BP: Jefferies reiterates buy recommendation and 525p target. Enterprise Inns: Peel
Read moreLondon close: Stocks rally after strong start in US
29th May 2012 16:29
-US markets provide a lift after long weekend -Chinese optimism lifts resource stocks -Greggs celebrates pasty tax U-turn With US stocks starting on the front foot following a long weekend, London's blue-chip equities were given a boost helping the Footsie to rally in afternoon trade. Investors St
Read moreSector movers: Defensives bear the brunt of increased risk appetite
29th May 2012 15:24
Defensive sectors were firmly out of favour on Tuesday as investors shifted into 'riskier' assets such as mining stocks. Food and drug retailers were the worst performers, with heavyweight supermarket peers Tesco, Sainsbury and Morrison registering moderate losses in afternoon trade. Other defensi
Read morePersistent inflation to postpone recovery in UK consumption
29th May 2012 08:16
In a research note published on Tuesday morning economists at Barclays explain to clients what has led them to push out their forecast for a recovery in private consumption, namely persistent inflation; something which has been oft commented by some Bank of England watchers of late. Thus, Barclay
Read moreLondon close: Gains erased as Spanish yields advance
28th May 2012 17:02
- Gains trimmed by the end of trade - Newsflow improves in Greece; New Democracy support increases - Spanish concerns weigh on sentiment London blue chips finished broadly flat on Monday as the initial optimism surrounding the Greek elections was outweighed in afternoon trade by ongoing concerns ab
Read moreJohn Lewis singing in the rain
25th May 2012 10:13
Other retailers may be complaining about the miserable British weather last week but the employee-owned John Lewis Partnership has been singing in the rain. Overall revenues in the week to May 19th were up 11.6% year-on-year at £59.7m, led by strong demand for electrical and home technology product
Read moreThursday newspaper round-up: BoE, Facebook, BAE
24th May 2012 07:08
No "rational person" would want to see Greece leave the Eurozone, Nick Clegg will say today, warning that Britain will be worse off if the currency starts to break up. Markets tumbled again on Wednesday in reaction to fears that Greece's exit was being prepared. David Cameron was in Brussels pleadin
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Miners wanted as risk appetite increases
22nd May 2012 15:48
There were just a handful of stocks registering losses on Tuesday afternoon, mainly the defensives, as investors shifted back into 'riskier' assets following a week of heavy losses. Real estate investment trust (REIT) peers Land Securities and Hammerson were among the worst performers, joined by su
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks rise ahead of EU summit
22nd May 2012 12:00
- Miners wanted on Chinese stimulus speculation - Fitch downgrades Japanese rating - Markets await EU summit tomorrow, OECD backs eurobonds The FTSE 100 held on to its earlier gains by Tuesday lunchtime as investors look ahead to tomorrow's EU summit with optimism, as pressure builds on Eurozone l
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks rise but Eurozone still in focus
21st May 2012 11:31
- G8 underwhelms as euro crisis continues to hamper sentiment - Cameron warns Eurozone to anticipate Greek exit - Barclays to offload BlackRock stake The FTSE 100 had held on to early gains by Monday lunchtime, as the blue-chips index rebounds from hitting a six-month low on Friday. US stock future
Read moreSector movers: Burberry hit by China growth downgrade
18th May 2012 15:45
Fashion chain Burberry is dragging the Personal Goods sector down, ahead of its results next week. The firm, which counts China as one of its major export markets, always seems to take a hit when there is bad news about the economy of the People's Republic, and the catalyst this time is the downgra
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: ITV gains while Weir takes a hit
9th May 2012 15:14
Terrestrial broadcaster ITV was performing well after saying that its first-half net advertising revenues will be ahead of the market, thanks to an expected boost from the Euro 2012 football tournament. Revenues at Broadcasting & Online edged up a mere 1% to £440m in the first three months of 2012 f
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