Ophir Energy’s shares slide on dry Gabon well March 19, 2014 OPHIR Energy plunged around 20 per cent in early trading yesterday, after the FTSE 250-listed oil and gas explorer said it had failed to find commercial volumes of oil and gas after drilling a well located off Gabon. “The Padouck Deep-1 result is disappointing but its failure appears to be prospect-specific and does not dampen [...]
Analyst Views: What did you make of Ophir Energy’s exploration update? March 19, 2014 DRAGAN TRAJKOV | ORIEL SECURITIES We are puzzled by the market reaction. Exploration is a numbers game and in order to systematically benefit from it, it is necessary to be patient. Ophir has a good exploration record at a low entry cost. BRIAN GALLAGHER | INVESTEC Sourcing has proved inconclusive and now is the primary [...]
New graphics chips range lifts Imagination March 19, 2014 IMAGINATION Technologies led the FTSE 250 yesterday morning after the British technology giant announced a “disruptive” new line of graphics processors for smartphones. Shares were also boosted by UBS, which said that Imagination was “down but not out” in a note that upgraded the stock from neutral to a buy. UBS analyst David Mulholland said: [...]
Flood uncertainty could hit premiums March 19, 2014 RATINGS agency Fitch has warned that uncertainty over the amount of money the government is going to spend on flood defences could mean increased risk to insurers and higher costs to policy-holders, in order to fund the industry’s Flood RE scheme.
Deficit down as UK’s recovery surges ahead March 19, 2014 BORROWING is falling faster than expected as the economic recovery picks up, the spending watchdog said yesterday, predicting the budget will be in surplus in 2018-19, Economic growth will accelerate to 2.7 per cent this year, up from 1.8 per cent in 2013, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) said. The OBR also upgraded its [...]
Unemployment dives as recovery accelerates March 19, 2014 JOBLESSNESS dived again at the start of the year, official figures showed, giving the chancellor a boost as he unveiled his budget, and living standards are set to rise this year. Pay increased by 1.7 per cent in the year to January, almost as high as inflation at 1.9 per cent. Private sector pay is [...]
Housing taxes set to double as property price boom continues March 19, 2014 SOARING house prices will push up inheritance tax and stamp duty payments to around double their current level over the next five years, officials estimated yesterday. Almost 10 per cent of deaths will result in an inheritance tax bill by 2018-19, double the level this year. As a result revenues will grow by 11 per cent [...]
Insurance sector hammered by annuity shock March 19, 2014 LIFE insurers were the biggest losers yesterday after radical plans to give ageing savers instant access to their pension pots sparked a mass insurance sell-off. FTSE 250-listed Just Retirement and Partnership Assurance were the hardest hit, with both losing close to half their market value. Just Retirement closed down 42.4 per cent while Partnership fell [...]
Isa allowance hiked to £15,000 March 19, 2014 SAVERS can stash 30 per cent more cash in tax free savings accounts every year after chancellor George Osborne ripped up the rule book on individual saving accounts (Isas) yesterday. The Isa allowance, currently set at £11,520 for the current tax year, will jump to £15,000 on 1 July, the biggest allowance hike since Isas [...]
Q and A: Twice as Nisa: 6 questions answered March 19, 2014 So what is all this about a Nisa? I thought that was a shop? No, Nisa is short for New Individual Savings Account, the Treasury’s rebranded Isa which it unveiled yesterday. The Nisa savings allowance limit from July 1 2014 will be £15,000 a year. Is the £15,000 Nisa savings allowance really such a big [...]