BEST OF THE BROKERS August 2, 2009 LOGICALogica received a double upgrade to “overweight” from Morgan Stanley, which says the stock is now its top pick. “Time to get positive”, said the broker, as it raised the price target 86 per cent to 130p. It said that the discount on the stock due to gearing concerns is no longer warranted and that [...]
Metrovacesca quits Walbrook August 2, 2009 Legal & General is set to land £120m in compensation after Spanish property company Metrovacesa pulled out of the Walbrook property project in the City. Metrovacesa bought the Walbrook project from Legal & General in September 2006 for £240m. It had agreed to begin demolishing the buildings in Walbrook Square before December 2012 to build [...]
The Smith & Nephew chief intent on making waves in tough times August 2, 2009 When politicians say that Britain should have more upmarket, research intensive manufacturing businesses, what they really mean is that we need more Smith & Nephews. Over the last five years, the firm, founded over 150 years ago, has grown its sales from £1.39bn to £2.3bn in 2008. It invests a very strong four per cent [...]
BANKS HIDE BEHIND DISGUISE AT GLORIOUS GOODWOOD WASH-OUT July 30, 2009 A RIGHT royal washout yesterday at the third day of Glorious Goodwood, one of the City’s favourite sporting events (read: an extravagant booze-up in posh suits and frocks). The rain came down hard on several occasions, sending those who had arrived for the annual Ladies Day scuttling for cover under their hats – and huddling [...]
REVEALED: WALL STREET BANKS’ BONUS BONANZA July 30, 2009 NEARLY 5,000 bankers at the top nine US lenders were paid bonuses of more than $1m in 2008, despite their employers receiving $175bn (£106bn) in taxpayer-backed bailout funds, it was revealed yesterday. New York attorney general Andrew Cuomo found that staff at the banks, all of which received funds via the Troubled Asset Relief Programme [...]
FSA to probe trading in oil July 30, 2009 THE FINANCIAL Services Authority (FSA) is to quiz oil industry representatives, hedge fund managers and politicians on the issue of whether speculators impact on oil prices. The meeting, scheduled for 5 August, will address whether or not the City watchdog should impose limits on oil trades positions, as has recently been mooted by the US [...]
A partial defence of banking bonuses July 30, 2009 FINANCIAL voyeurism has arrived with a splash – and it is unlikely to go away again. Yesterday’s report from New York, details of which can be found on our front page, make rivetting reading. The numbers for Goldman Sachs are fascinating and confirm its reputation as a money-making machine: read the raw data and marvel [...]
Train strikes hit London July 30, 2009 RAIL strikes caused havoc for commuters travelling on the National Express East Anglia train services yesterday, as members of the Rail Maritime and Transport (RMT) and Aslef unions took industrial action over a pay dispute. The 48-hour walk-out had “crippled” services, the unions said. Many commuters stayed at home as a limited peak-time service failed [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 30, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES VW BRACED FOR “ZERO GROWTH” IN CAR MARKETVolkswagen warned yesterday that it could face flat sales in 2010 as Europe’s largest carmaker reported a sharp profit drop in the second quarter. The third-biggest carmaker behind General Motors and Toyota said it expected “zero growth” in the car market next year. PRIVATE EQUITY SUFFERED [...]
BHP to elect new chairman soon July 30, 2009 The world’s largest miner BHP Billiton is close to announcing a new chairman to replace Don Argus and is understood to have narrowed the field to two candidates. Current non-executive directors Jacques Nasser, the former Ford chief executive and John Schubert, the chairman of Commonwealth Bank of Australia, head the running.