Deficit for UK traded goods worst in year February 9, 2010 THERE were more signs that the UK will face a tough slog back to economic recovery yesterday after trade data for the end of last year was weaker than expected. The UK’s deficit in traded goods widened to £7.3bn in December from £6.8bn the previous month; this is the largest deficit for a year as [...]
Exports a reliable source of growth for German economy February 9, 2010 GERMAN exports continued to rise in December, increasing by three per cent on the previous month, indicating that foreign trade will support economic growth in Europe’s largest economy. But while exports continued to rise, imports reversed the previous month’s decline to grow 4.5 per cent after a 6.2 per cent drop in November. Consequently, the [...]
Successful gilt auction alleviates fears over Bank’s strategy change February 9, 2010 BRITAIN easily placed a £2bn sale of 25-year gilts yesterday, although prices were forced lower ahead of the auction as investors demanded a premium after the central bank halted its bond-buying programme. The auction of September 2034 was seen as a litmus test for the market after the Bank of England’s decision to halt its [...]
British Land beats banks’ expectations February 9, 2010 BRITISH Land has boosted confidence in London’s “rocky” property market by delivering strong third quarter results. In the final three months of 2009 the value of the developer’s assets in the City rose by 8.2 per cent to £2.46bn and its net asset value per share by 18 per cent to 438p – substantially outperforming [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: IS THE WORST OVER FOR THE PROPERTY MARKET? February 9, 2010 KEVIN DAVIDSON | CAPITAL ECONOMICS Momentum in the City is up but it is not clear that the rental downturn is over outside of the City which could affect long term capital values. Banks are still exposed to the commercial market and it could quickly become overvalued again – it is not profitable or stable [...]
Euronext profits boosted by derivatives and cuts February 9, 2010 THE NYSE Euronext exchange reported a 12 per cent rise in fourth-quarter profits yesterday as vigorous cost-cutting offset the impact of fierce competition and lower trading volumes. The transatlantic operator beat expectations with a net profit of $172m (£110m) for the three months to the end of December, compared to a loss of $1.3bn a [...]
FUTURES AND OPTIONS February 9, 2010 TUCKED away behind Cannon Street, the former London International Financial Futures Exchange (Liffe) has become an essential part of NYSE Euronext’s business model. The trading platform and its clearing house underpinned the exchange’s $182m (£115.9m) derivatives revenue, and NYSE Euronext is hoping the semi-mutualisation of its US equivalent will help create a similar buzz on [...]
Barclays boss hits out at US plan for banks February 9, 2010 The chief executive of Barclays yesterday hit out at US President Barack Obama’s proposals to make the financial system “safer” by scaling down the size of the banks and stopping them from carrying out riskier trading activities. John Varley told the House of Commons Treasury Committee that a curb on banks’ abilities to carry out [...]
Slow start to 2010 for hedge funds as markets tread water February 9, 2010 HEDGE funds produced their first negative return for 10 months in January as long-only and macro strategies suffered, according to the TrimTabs/BarclayHedge database. The California-based research company said yesterday that hedge funds lost eight basis points on average for the month after a buoyant 2009. Portfolios holding shares for the long term dropped 2.6 per [...]
Reckitt Benckiser brands defy recession February 9, 2010 RECKITT Benckiser, which makes products including Nurofen, saw profits jump by 23 per cent last year despite the recession. The company said 2009 had been a good year and predicted growth in 2010. Reckitt’s drug Suboxone – a heroin substitute – accounted for 16 per cent of the profits. In the year to 31 December, [...]