132 UK companies issue coronavirus warnings as FTSE 100 spirals February 28, 2020 More than 100 UK-listed companies have now warned the stock market of the effects of the coronavirus on their businesses, according to figures released today. British giants like Guinness brewer Diageo and British Airways owner International Airlines Group are just two of 132 companies to issue warnings to investors. In the last week alone, 62 [...]
Oil prices drop again as coronavirus cases escalate February 28, 2020 Oil prices fell again today as the spread of the coronavirus cast uncertainty over the world economy. Oil prices saw further falls after an initial rally today after yesterday’s slump. A spike in the number of coronavirus cases dragged prices back down, along with the world’s stocks. Brent Crude plunged almost five per cent to [...]
Covid-19 chaos boosts Plus500 trading after torrid 2019 February 28, 2020 Plus500 today reported a significant increase in trading activity over its first quarter of 2020 as the coronavirus outbreak spurred traders to greater levels of activity. The trading platform’s shares soared almost 10 per cent to 958p after today’s trading update. Panic over the coronavirus outbreak has caused turmoil across the world economy, leading to [...]
US stocks fall for seventh consecutive day as coronavirus fears increase February 28, 2020 US stocks opened down again today for the seventh straight day as investors continued to sell after new cases of coronavirus pummelled global stock markets. The Dow Jones and the S&P 500 both fell 2.5 per cent, to 25,119.36 and 2,904.44 respectively. The Nasdaq fared marginally better, opening 1.9 per cent down at 8,402.67. The [...]
Pound slips on coronavirus trade slump February 28, 2020 | City Talk GBP / EUR Update It was an up and down week for the pound. At the end of last week, it had made an average gain of 0.3%, but the positivity was short-lived. At the beginning of this week, retail sales showed a 0.9% increase after two months of decline, but the pound was pushed [...]
One month after Brexit: what’s happened so far? February 28, 2020 | City Talk It’s been a month since the UK’s exit from the EU, but has anything actually changed? The UK has now moved into a transitional period which will last until December 31st. During this time, we exist under the terms outlined in our ‘divorce agreement’. Negotiations for a final trade deal are underway and the fate [...]
Global stock rout continues as coronavirus rattles markets February 27, 2020 US and European stock markets continued their dramatic slide today as investors rapidly lose taste for riskier assets amid the global coronavirus outbreak. In the US, the S&P 500 stock index was 1.2 per cent lower four hours into trading. Earlier in the day it had briefly fallen into so-called correction territory – a fall [...]
Oil sinks to lowest price in a year as virus fears grow February 27, 2020 Oil prices today hit their lowest level since January last year as fears about the impact of the coronavirus on the world economy grew. Brent crude was down 4.3 per cent to $51.14 a barrel this afternoon as the virus continues its spread outside of China. Any impact on global consumption or manufacturing patterns will [...]
Hunting shares surge despite earnings slip February 27, 2020 Engineering group Hunting saw its shares jump almost 14 per cent to 331p by the close of trading in London this evening after it gave a “cautiously optimistic” lookahead for the year. The company, which makes equipment for the oil and fracking industry, credits its success with a strong balance sheet containing $40m (£31m) in [...]
Financial watchdog to investigate scandal-ridden NMC Health February 27, 2020 NMC Health is facing battles on two fronts after the City watchdog stepped up its probe into the embattled hospital operator and a major shareholder criticised its handling of an investigation into its finances. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) will investigate NMC, the FTSE 100 company said, just hours after trading in its shares was [...]