CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS October 3, 2010 Merchant Securities The financial services group has appointed Chris Smith as its new head of institutional broking, focusing on establishing a research capability in the financials sector. Smith has covered financials for over 20 years, latterly at Jefferies International and Oriel Securities. He also previously worked for HSBC James Capel, where he was the top-ranked [...]
Tensions rise among MPC over more QE October 3, 2010 SPECULATION of a three-way split among the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has intensified in recent days, creating a debate among City economists about whether the Bank will loosen policy even further. External MPC member Adam Posen last week put the cat among the already nervous pigeons when he argued strongly in favour [...]
Losing talented staff costs UK £42bn a year October 3, 2010 UK EMPLOYERS are facing an annual £42bn bill to replace top talent, while almost a quarter of employees are looking for a new job because of insufficient pay. According to new research from audit giant PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the cost of replacing a competent member of staff equals roughly a year of that person’s salary – [...]
DO YOU THINK THE BANK OF ENGLAND WILL RESTART QE? October 3, 2010 PETER DIXON | COMMERZBANK “Desperate times may call for desperate measures, but until such times as the economic recovery goes into reverse, doing nothing may be the best strategy. And if the Fed does begin its QE2 programme, the UK can afford to keep its powder dry by free-riding on the Fed’s coat-tails.” PHILIP SHAW [...]
Nakheel mulls more Islamic bond issuance October 3, 2010 NAKHEEL is in preliminary talks to list an Islamic bond, part of its restructuring plan, on Nasdaq Dubai and a “good percentage” of banks have agreed to the developer’s repayment plan, its chairman said yesterday. Ali Rashid Lootah said he was “very confident” the builder of islands in the shape of palms will complete the [...]
Immigration cap is City’s biggest complaint October 3, 2010 MARIA from the Home Office called me about a recent key-worker visa application at 9.00am and suggested, in no uncertain terms, that she drop by for an immigration audit at lunchtime. We settled on teatime the next day. Britain’s clampdown on skilled migrant workers is in a rush. My encounter with Home Office enforcers last [...]
Dividend growth could hit 22 per cent October 3, 2010 THE UK is likely to experience double-digit dividend growth in 2011 according to a top fund manager. Tineke Frikkee, manager of the Newton Higher Income Fund says she is optimistic about the outlook for growth next year after three consecutive years of declining dividend income. She says the UK is likely to see between eight and 22 [...]
Two US media firms vying for stake in BBC Worldwide’s UKTV October 3, 2010 TWO US media companies are vying to become BBC Worldwide’s new partner in UKTV, the broadcaster behind digital channels Dave, Watch and Gold, according to the Sunday Times. Discovery Communications and Scripps Networks are trying to team up with BBC Worldwide, which owns 50 per cent of UKTV, to buy the remaining stake from cable [...]
Terror threat raised by US and UK October 3, 2010 The US and Britain both warned yesterday of an increased risk of terrorist attacks in Europe, with Washington saying al Qaeda might target transport infrastructure. The US State Department issued a warning directed at American citizens travelling in Europe, without singling out any specific countries. The UK raised the terrorism threat level in its advice [...]
Sovereign funds insource more October 3, 2010 Sovereign funds are developing in-house portfolio management techniques after the global crisis, a worrying trend for asset management companies, an executive at research firm Cerulli Associates said. Global asset managers, who have historically pocketed attractive fees by managing a significant share of the sovereign funds, need to be aware of this development while approaching them [...]