European markets slide on open February 26, 2013 As markets open for the first time since Italy's political gridlock has become apparent, numbers are red across the board: FTSE MIB -5 per centFTSE 100 -1.4 per centIBEX -3.4 per centDAX -2.1 per centCAC -2.5 per cent BERLUSCONI SAYS MARKET ARE BIT CRAZY — Steve Collins (@TradeDesk_Steve) February 26, 2013
Italian shares set to plummet February 26, 2013 This was the grim picture as the FTSE MIB closed yesterday: (Source: Yahoo! Finance) Allister Heath wrote on Italy's election woes in his column today: Italy has spoken. Few in the City like what they are hearing, but they should listen carefully. Bond yields, which had fallen when it was thought the centre-left was cruising [...]
Moody’s blues already anticipated by markets February 25, 2013 The loss of the UK’s AAA has shocked nobody WHEN Moody’s stripped the UK of its AAA rating on Friday, few were surprised. It is a move that the markets had been anticipating for months, and the lack of any significant market reaction shows just how much the decision had already been priced in. From [...]
The Tipster | Safe as housebuilders February 25, 2013 WHILE revenues are likely to be flat, traders expect Barratt Developments to report improvements in its margins tomorrow, which should help to boost profit levels. But the property developer’s shares have surged by nearly 70 per cent over the last year, leading some to declare that most of the good news is already priced in. Capital [...]
View from the City – It’s a bad time to sell off RBS stake February 25, 2013 WHILE you are ruminating over the content of today’s City A.M., earnings results from RBS on Thursday and Lloyds Banking Group on Friday will be approaching the top of the financial agenda. Although the “Black Horse”, was first to admit to wholesale miss-selling of payment protection insurance (PPI), it seems that it will be easier [...]
Don’t sneer at big bank bonuses February 25, 2013 CNBC COMMENT IT’S confession time. I had a major “senior moment” last week when, not for the first time, I completely misunderstood a piece of eminent academic research. The piece in question was about banker pay. Brilliant, I thought, here’s a piece of hard research that confirms that bankers are still making and generating vast [...]
Osborne faces Commons rating humiliation February 25, 2013 During an urgent question on the government's economic policy George Osborne was asked whether he agreed with himself that the UK downgrade is "humiliating". While he rightly pointed out that markets didn't react to the downgrade, that doesn't absolve him of responsibility for the economic conditions that led to it. Despite having set the AAA [...]
Berlusconi projected to seize Senate win February 25, 2013 Senate projections are in: Rai: Berlusconi 31 per cent, Bersani 29.5 per cent, Grillo 25.1 per cent, Monti 9.6 per cent Sky: Berlusconi 31 per cent, Bersani 29.7 per cent, Grillo 26 per cent, Monti 8.2 per cent The euro heads back down against the dollar: (Source: Yahoo! Finance) The [...]
Italian markets positive as voting closes February 25, 2013 Voting has closed in Italy, and Sky has released instant polls (not exit polls) that show the centre-left clearly in the lead as we predicted earlier: Bersani 34.5 per centBerlusconi 29 per centGrillo 19 per centMonti 9.5 per cent While the outcome is not yet certain and will largely depend on voting in Lombardy, markets [...]
Berlusconi set for defeat in Italian elections February 25, 2013 There are reports of a low turnout in Silvio Berlusconi's key areas as voter numbers fall by 8% in the north west and 9.6% in the south and the islands. Berlusconi also lagged in recently leaked polls. A victory for the centre-left Democratic party is looking likely. While voting for both the Senate and lower [...]