RAJARATNAM UPS THE STAKES IN INSIDER TRADING PROBE DEFENCE May 9, 2010 TIME was when those facing high-profile lawsuits would crawl into hiding with their respective legal advisers, shunning all publicity and emerging only to don their sharp suits on the morning they went into court. But not any more. Perhaps emboldened by Goldman Sachs’ go-get-‘em attitude to shielding itself against the SEC, Raj Rajaratnam – the [...]
BILL OF THE WEEK May 9, 2010 PLENTY of food for thought for these eight accountants on Friday lunchtime, as they headed to Farringdon’s Vivat Bacchus restaurant for a post-election discussion of the results and possible implications for British politics. Our connoisseurs fed their debate with foie gras, asparagus and ostrich carpaccio for starters, rack of lamb, springbok, beef and sea bass [...]
Clegg to Cameron: time to cut a deal May 7, 2010 POLITICAL EDITOR But Gordon Brown refuses to give up without a fight NICK CLEGG threw down the gauntlet to David Cameron earlier today, calling on the Tory leader to prove he could form a government that would act in the national interest. The Liberal Democrat leader made the overtures shortly after voters woke up to [...]
A Lab-Lib deal would be terrible for Britain May 7, 2010 AMONG all of the uncertainties of our first hung Parliament in 36 years, a few definite trends can now be discerned. The first, and most important, is that we are now in coalition talks. Gordon Brown wants to cling to power and do anything he can to create a coalition with the Lib Dems and anybody [...]
It was the Tories wot should’ve won it May 7, 2010 IT was the Tories wot should’ve won it. David Cameron entered this election with huge advantages over his rivals. The party’s coffers were bursting with almost £18m – the maximum that can be spent on a campaign – practically outstripping the Labour and Liberal Democrat war-chests put together. Nearly every newspaper came out in support [...]
Tories make gains but no killer blow May 7, 2010 THE Tories today emerged as the biggest party but with no clear majority. As City P.M. went to print 622 of the 650 seats had been declared. The Tories had won 292, Labour 251 and the Lib Dems 52. The share of seats saw Labour lose 87 while the Tories notched up an extra 92. [...]
Over £40m gambled on outcome of the election May 7, 2010 MORE than £40m was bet on the outcome of the general election. The hype surrounding the closest-run election in almost 30 years was clear as four times as many bets were placed compared to 2005. Most punters placed their bets on a Tory majority or a hung parliament. Paddy Power had already paid out on [...]
Cameron fails to turn Britain blue May 7, 2010 TORY leader David Cameron had hoped to turn Britain blue today but the party’s plan to target swing voters waned the further the Conservatives moved away from their heartlands in the South East. Conservative strategists masterminded wins from Labour in seats like Kingswood in South Gloucestershire with a swing of 9.4 per cent, or Sutton [...]
Sterling falls on fears of uncertainty May 7, 2010 STERLING sank to a one year low today as markets reacted badly to the possibility of a hung parliament. The pound fell as low as $1.4596 as investors turned to safer currencies, namely the dollar, for stability. Duncan Higgins from Caxton FX said: “The outlook for sterlng is negative from here. The dollar is the [...]
FTSE panics at the off but recovers some of its losses May 7, 2010 The FTSE fell 6.6 points to 5254.36 this morning as investors woke up to the prospect of a hung parliament. Panic on the opening bell caused the blue chip index to lose 100 points but it later recovered. “Sterling has been the worst affected by the news of the hung parliament but there has undoubtedly [...]