THE WEEK AHEAD in association with GFT May 8, 2011 COMPANY NEWS ● Today, energy company Centrica delivers a trading statement and holds its AGM. ● Also today, HSBC delivers its first quarter trading update. The update includes more financial details than previous quarterly updates. Pre-tax profits are expected to rise. ● Serco also holds its AGM today. The FTSE 100 company was founded in [...]
Upward trend in crude hasn’t been terminated: Oil’ll be back May 8, 2011 AFTER a long sustained period of rising oil prices, many traders had their fingers burnt in last week’s commodity crash. Though with 20-20 hindsight it is easy to say that there was inevitably going to be a bump in the road for the black gold, many are smarting from the hit. This year has seen [...]
THE TIPSTER May 8, 2011 SILVER saw its biggest drop since 1980 on Thursday and has declined a massive 30 per cent since hitting its all time high at the end of April. The unwritten rule is that a fall of 20 per cent marks the start of a new bear market, but considering that the bulk of the selling [...]
Lloyds leads slide in banking stocks as FTSE loses ground May 5, 2011 SLIDING commodity prices thumped energy stocks and miners while Lloyds Banking Group led financials down, pulling Britain’s top share index lower yesterday, with technicals pointing to further weakness. Bearish investors came to the fore as heavyweight commodity stocks Royal Dutch Shell and Lonmin fell 1.8 and 4.1 per cent respectively on lower crude and metal [...]
Commodity crash sends US tumbling May 5, 2011 US stocks fell for a fourth day yesterday as a massive sell-off in commodities spilled into other markets, forcing investors out of riskier assets and rattling the equities market before today’s payrolls data. Oil suffered the biggest one-day price drop ever for the Brent futures contract, which settled down 8.6 per cent at $110.80 per [...]
Commodities drag on FTSE but high street names rally May 4, 2011 COMMODITY stocks pulled Britain’s top share index lower yesterday, ending the FTSE 100’s recent rally as disappointing US manufacturing data spoiled investors’ appetite for risk. The FTSE 100 closed down 98.81 points, or 1.6 per cent, at 5,984.07, with the FTSE volatility index up 11.4 per cent, hitting a near five-week high. The FTSE 100 [...]
US shares knocked by economic stats May 4, 2011 WEAK economic figures heightened stock investors’ anxiety over the extended rally, knocking US shares lower for a third day yesterday. Recent winners in the energy and industrials sectors were hit most, and a key indicator of investor worry rose for a fourth day in what some say is the outset of extended weakness for stocks. [...]
Still some wag left in the tail for US equity fund investors May 4, 2011 WE ARE in the middle of US earnings season and to date first quarter results have been very strong, with positive outlooks for the rest of the year. In its first quarter report, Marsh & McLennan announced yesterday that its net income had increased $77m to $325m. Earnings per share had increased 13 cents to [...]
Keep cash in preparation for any crises May 4, 2011 In order to be able to pay for unexpected emergencies, it is vital you hold some savings in the most liquid of assets: cash. There are even a few easy access accounts with bonuses that can almost keep up with the current level of 4 per cent CPI inflation. However, it would be a mistake [...]
PERSONAL FINANCE NEWS May 4, 2011 MINTS ARE THE NEW BRICS After the success of the Brics, Fidelity is asking whether Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria and Turkey (Mints) are the investment opportunities of the next decade. Fidelity says “Mints may just have the potential to be as rewarding for investors over the next ten years as BRICs have been in the past [...]