BoE: policies helped 2009 equity boom March 14, 2010 THE Bank of England has admitted its huge quantitative easing programme and loose monetary policy contributed to the surprise boom in equity prices last year. Shares rallied strongly between March and December 2009 after governor Mervyn King pumped £198bn into the financial system through gilt repurchasing, commonly referred to as “printing money”. The hefty stimulus, designed [...]
Google’s Nexus One smartphone delayed March 14, 2010 Google has been forced to delay the arrival of its Nexus One mobile phone until next month. The device the internet giant hopes will be an iPhone killer will be the firm’s first own-branded phone to hit the UK. Its Android software has already been incorporated into a number of other smartphones but the Nexus [...]
Job rates beat drop in output March 14, 2010 BUSINESSES took a flexible approach to reducing labour costs during the recession, meaning the rate of redundancies was milder than the harsh drop in national output. The Bank of England’s quarterly bulletin showed employment fell by 1.9 per cent over the past two years, several percentage points better than during the downturns of the 1990s [...]
Foreign interest boosts property March 14, 2010 INCREASED interest from sovereign wealth funds and retail investors helped push commercial property back into the black at the start of this year, the Bank of England noted. The BoE cautioned that sector values remained “well below” their 2007 peak, however, and pointed out derivatives appeared to price in little capital gain over the next [...]
China National Offshore Oil Corp in venture with Bridas Energy Holdings March 14, 2010 CHINA National Offshore Oil Corp, China’s biggest offshore oil explorer, plans a joint venture with Argenina’s Bridas Energy Holdings, paying $3.1bn (£2.04bn) to take a 50 per cent stake in a subsidiary, Bridas Corporation, the company said yesterday. Bridas Corp, which is currently wholly-owned by Bridas Energy, will become equally owned by the partners and [...]
These are the judges who will name the stars of 2010 March 14, 2010 CITY A.M. is looking forward to another scoop later this year: our first-ever awards ceremony where we will be celebrating London’s financial and business community and its most succesful individuals and firms. Our newspaper is delighted to be hosting and organising the awards in partnership with Interactive Investor; we are proud that our awards will be [...]
High street sales bounce back after sterling falls March 14, 2010 RETAIL sales in London rebounded in February with a like-for-like surge of almost ten per cent fuelled by a drop in the value of sterling. The rise came after a dismal start to the year as freezing conditions kept shoppers at home. Across the UK sales were only up an average of 2.2 per cent [...]
London house prices hit by March slump March 14, 2010 HOUSE prices have come to a standstill this month as sellers return to the market after a dismal winter. The latest survey by property website Rightmove shows that UK property is now a buyers’ market and new sellers have been forced to ask for just 0.1 per cent more, the lowest rise ever-recorded in March. [...]
Hedge funds fear EU will rush to bring in protectionist new rules March 14, 2010 THE private equity industry will watch with baited breath as European Union finance ministers discuss the regulation of alternative investment funds tomorrow. Spain, the current EU president, is pushing for an early agreement on the controversial Alternative Investment Fund Managers directive. UK-based buyout groups and hedge fund managers vehemently oppose certain aspects of the draft [...]
Center Parcs renegotiates debt March 14, 2010 Center Parcs, the short break holiday provider, is currently trying to renegotiate its £1bn debt. Its owner, Blackstone, is in discussions with lenders to extend the terms of of its loan by two years to 2013. The move could see the business being floated although current market conditions make it unlikely any time soon.