LONDON WEEK AHEAD July 29, 2012 RESULTS season continues with a slew of banks, energy and leisure firms due to update this week, while the Bank of England’s monthly decision on interest rates is due on Thursday. Today’s biggest news comes in the form of interims from under-fire banking giant HSBC and household goods behemoth Reckitt Benckiser. The Bank is set [...]
WALL ST THE WEEK AHEAD July 29, 2012 STOCKS took off at the end of the week, drawn by the allure of a helping hand from the world’s two most powerful central banks. Traders are unlikely to resist those charms again this week. The US Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank both meet this week amid investor expectations of action to stimulate [...]
All hail this techie who is a boost to black cabs July 29, 2012 FOR anyone who has waited on the pavement, praying that the next car to turn the corner is a black cab, Hailo could prove a godsend. Founded in 2010, Jay Bregman’s business lets you hail a black cab through your mobile phone. The app is free to download and the service is free to the [...]
A snapshot view: The right time to say goodbye to a business July 29, 2012 ON HOLIDAY in India in 1995, I was very popular with the locals. Before flying from London, I had splashed out about £1,000 for one of the first digital cameras for the consumer market. Nowadays it would seem Stone Age. But back then it was a sensation whenever I used it. Locals jostled to get [...]
Tip-top resources worth exploiting July 29, 2012 WITH the Olympics in full flow, the government is determined to drum up business from our foreign guests. After all, trade is what the wealth of nations is built upon. For its part, StartUp Britain has a free event on 6 August in City Hall on how start-ups and small businesses can explore overseas opportunities. [...]
FTSE breaks four-day losing run as Draghi’s speech boosts mood July 26, 2012 BRITAIN’S top share index rose yesterday after European Central Bank president Mario Draghi pledged to act if needed to preserve the euro, boosting sentiment among investors hoping for a fresh round of stimulus. Speaking at an investment conference in London, Draghi said the central bank was ready to do whatever it takes within its mandate [...]
Wall St rises on hopes of action to save euro July 26, 2012 US stocks rode a wave of hope inspired by comments from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi yesterday, ignoring mixed corporate results to focus on the strongest signal yet of the ECB’s intentions to protect the Eurozone. Draghi hinted the ECB would target high sovereign bond yields, a measure the ECB has been reluctant to [...]
One man’s fund and Games July 26, 2012 WHEN Jessica Ennis skips down from the podium next weekend, clutching her gleaming new heptathlon gold medal and wiping a tear of joy from her eye, don’t be surprised to see her reach for her phone – she’ll probably be texting Barrie Wells to say thanks. Wells is the Merseyside self-made millionaire who has personally [...]
FTSE ends flat as patchy earnings steal focus away from Eurozone July 25, 2012 BRITAIN’S top share index steadied yesterday, pausing after three days of falls thanks to a mixed batch of corporate results that pitted a weak showing in Europe for GlaxoSmithKline and BT against a sterling performance for chipmaker Arm. The international backdrop also offered conflicting signals, with weak US data on the one hand and growing [...]
Rare miss by Apple pushes Nasdaq lower July 25, 2012 THE S&P 500 fell for a fourth day and the Nasdaq dropped yesterday after a rare earnings stumble from Apple, while strong results from Boeing and Caterpillar lifted the Dow. Apple, the most valuable US company by market capitalisation, reported sales late on Tuesday that fell short of Wall Street’s expectations as the European economy [...]