CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS May 18, 2010 RWC Partners The asset manager has hired Schroders fund managers Nick Purves (pictured) and Ian Lance. Purves and Lance will manage both value and income funds at RWC, building on their track record with the Schroder UK Equity Income Fund, the best-performing fund in the IMA UK equity income sector over the past five years. [...]
CITY PHILANTHROPISTS LURED BY PROMISE OF SOME GOLDEN EGGS May 18, 2010 OFF to the Merchant Taylors Hall on Threadneedle Street yesterday for what has become a stalwart of the City’s calendar – the annual Gulls’ Eggs lunch. This year marked the 22nd anniversary of the affair, which has traditionally used the excuse of what must be the shortest season of any earthly foodstuff to bring hundreds [...]
British Land back in black after property market picks up May 18, 2010 BRITISH land has returned to profit after the value of its property portfolio increased. The developer and landlord posted profits of £1.13bn for the year to 31 March. The company had suffered two years of heavy losses, including £3.93bn in the previous year. Its property portfolio, which includes the Broadgate Estate in the City, rose [...]
Inflation jumps to 17-month high May 18, 2010 UK inflation rose more than expected to 3.7 per cent in April. Bank of England governor Mervyn King must now write to new chancellor George Osborne to explain why the cost of living – set out in the consumer prices index (CPI) – is more than a percentage point above the target of two per [...]
Evolution and Collins Stewart boosted by wealthy clients May 18, 2010 WEALTHY clients are helping asset management groups Evolution and Collins Stewart to cope with volatile markets, they said. Evolution said income and operating profitability had both risen so far this year, although it did not say by how much. Assets under management at its private client division were up six per cent from December 2009 [...]
Vodafone posts £8.6bn annual profit May 18, 2010 VODAFONE has reported an annual pre-tax profit of £8.6bn. The figure has jumped from £3.1bn last year, while sales rose to £44.5bn from £41bn. However, the telecommunications giant took a hit on its key Indian business with a £2bn impairment charge attached to buying new licences. Vodafone, which has 341m subscribers, was upbeat about the [...]
BA halts strike in court victory May 17, 2010 BRITISH Airways (BA) last night won an eleventh-hour reprieve in its bid to stop cabin crew from walking out, after the High Court granted an injunction on grounds that the strike was unlawful. The judgment ruled that Unite, the union representing cabin crew, did not communicate ballot results to members, meaning the strike – which [...]
Pru reveals its cut-price rights issue May 17, 2010 PRUDENTIAL boss Tidjane Thiam formally embarked on his make-or-break bid for AIA in Asia yesterday as he unveiled a heavily discounted $21bn (£14bn) rights issue. One investor remarked the market had “squeezed” Prudential into offering 11 shares for every two shares held at 104p, a gaping 81 per cent discount to Friday’s closing price of [...]
Libor rises to 9-month high May 17, 2010 RISING concern over the exposure of banks to the highly-indedbted European countries has seen the rate at which banks lend to each other rise to its highest level since August. The key three-month US dollar London inter-bank offer rate, or Libor, rose 0.46000 per cent yesterday from Friday’s 0.44506 per cent. The euro rate rose [...]
Why hiking Vat will be very painful May 17, 2010 SO George Osborne has got his office for budget responsibility, tasked with auditing the public finances and producing independent economic forecasts. It is a splendid idea and a great opportunity for Sir Alan Budd, its first boss, to create a set of truly transparent national accounts. A crucial test will come with the treatment of [...]