Two traders charged in relation to London Whale scandal August 14, 2013 US prosecutors have charged two former JP Morgan traders over the $6.2bn “London Whale” trading scandal. The traders, Javier Martin-Artajo and Julien Grout, have been accused of attempting to manipulate the synthetic credit portfolio of JP Morgan’s chief investment office, which prosecutors say was an attempt to hide trading losses worth hundreds of millions of [...]
Apple share price highest since January August 14, 2013 Source: Yahoo Apple’s share price just missed hitting $500 (£322) as the US markets opened today, reaching $499.93 – up 2.1 per cent from the previous close. Apple’s fortunes looked a little brighter after activist investor Carl Icahn tweeted the company was undervalued and that he had bought a large stake in it. His announcement [...]
BlackBerry has been trying and failing to find a buyer for months August 14, 2013 BlackBerry’s announcement that it would consider a sale of the company followed nearly a year of unsuccessful attempts to find a buyer for the company, two people familiar with the matter have reportedly told Bloomberg. The sources said that, in recent months, JP Morgan and RBC Capital Markets were secretly contacting potential buyers, but found [...]
Egyptian banking activity suspended until next week as 56 confirmed dead August 14, 2013 The Egyptian central bank will suspend all banking activity in the country tomorrow amid violence in Cairo and other regions. Trading will resume at the start of next week. This comes as the Egyptian Health Ministry announces 56 people have been killed and 526 injured as security forces clashed with supporters of deposed president Mohammed [...]
US producer prices increase by less than expected in July August 14, 2013 Prices received for finished goods made by US producers increased by less than expected in July, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (release). Year-on-year, the producer price index (PPI) rose by 2.1 per cent, down from a 2.5 per cent rise the month and falling short of expectations of 2.4 per cent [...]
Piano maker Steinway bought for $512m August 14, 2013 Investment firm Paulson has announced it will be acquiring piano maker Steinway Musical Instruments for $40 (£26) per share – valuing the company at around $512m. On 13 August, Kohlberg & Company withdrew their offer for Steinway for $35 per share after Paulson made its rival bid. Steinway had already accepted the offer in July, [...]
Egypt shares downgraded as violence escalates August 14, 2013 NOAH Capital Markets has downgraded its outlook on Egyptian shares from neutral to “sell”. This comes as violence erupts again with Egyptian security forces moved in to clear two protest camps in Cairo occupied by supporters of deposed president Mohammed Morsi. Estimates of fatalities vary wildly, with the interior ministry denying any deaths were caused [...]
What the analysts are saying about Monetary Policy Committee minutes August 14, 2013 Earlier today, the Bank of England released the minutes of the latest meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee. Perhaps the most important thing to note is that there was one dissenter on forward guidance, Martin Weale, who disagreed with the time frame for one of the inflation knock-out conditions (more details here). Rob Wood, chief [...]
Four key charts from the UK labour force data August 14, 2013 The Office for National Statistics (ONS) released data on the condition of the UK labour force earlier this morning, showing slight improvements to employment and unemployment figures. Here are four key charts from the ONS release: We're doing better than the EU at least, but the fall in unemployment has flatlined compared to progress in [...]
EU commissioner: The recovery is in reach but the crisis is not over August 14, 2013 European commissioner for economic and monetary affairs and vice president of the European Commission Olli Rehn has said that “recovery is in reach” for the Eurozone after gross domestic product (GDP) data showed that the region officially exited the recession in the second quarter of the year. Rehn said the good news added to recent [...]