A tricky balancing act on tax reform September 21, 2010 CONFERENCE season is upon us and the next few weeks will be the first time the parties have had since May to slow down and take stock of this brave new post-coalition political world. Given the breakneck speed at which the coalition has been implementing its policies so far, the conference pause is also a [...]
Privacy laws offer City folk protection September 21, 2010 WARREN Buffet once said: “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently”. A professional reputation, much like a brand or business reputation, also takes many years to build and demands considerable further investment to nurture and grow. Such a reputation, [...]
The appeals of age shouldn’t be ignored September 21, 2010 Last month the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce appealed against an employment tribunal’s ruling that it had discriminated against its 42-year-old European head of derivatives marketing, Achim Beck, by allowing a 35 year-old manager to oust him after putting out a search brief explicitly seeking to replace him with someone younger. The bank lost. There [...]
Check the momentum behind any break out September 20, 2010 DESPITE a summer where equities drifted sideways and the recent slew of less upbeat economic data, the FTSE 100 has had a promising start to the autumn. Since the start of September it has risen around 400 points to close yesterday at 5,602.4 and some market participants are anticipating another move higher. “UK equities are [...]
TRUST GOLD MORE THAN POLITICIANS September 20, 2010 The summer is behind us. While equity trading volumes have yet to pick up, we’ve seen more activity from policymakers and central banks. Last week’s intervention by the Bank of Japan (BoJ) to halt the rise of the yen was a notable example. However, investors are likely to test the BoJ’s resolve. Germany is watching [...]
FTSE 100 gets a US boost to close at a four-month high September 20, 2010 Britain’s leading share index extended early gains to close strongly yesterday, after US market bulls helped London to its highest close since late April. The FTSE 100 closed up 94.09 points, or 1.7 per cent, at 5,602.54, more than reversing the 0.6 per cent decline in Friday’s session after risk appetite made a strong return. [...]
Wall St rises, S&P makes strong gains September 20, 2010 The S&P 500 closed at a four-month high yesterday as a long-awaited break above a technical range and a flurry of positive corporate news increased investor optimism. The break came a day before a Federal Reserve meeting in which the central bank is expected to renew a promise to keep its portfolio from shrinking but [...]
A libertarian innovator burning to see his company grow even further September 20, 2010 Fresh off the plane from Denmark, Kim Fournais talks rapidly, his passion unmistakable. He is in celebratory mood. “Saxo Bank is 18 years old today – we are old enough for a driving licence!” Evidently, to Fournais the company he helped found is still young. “I love it. I love what we’re trying to do. [...]
UK banks might look cheap, but pick carefully September 20, 2010 UK BANKING stocks rallied last week after the announcement of the Basel III banking reforms. But although the sector has avoided further bank-bashing, much of the detail has yet to emerge and a jumpy market should make for fruitful autumn trading. New capital ratio requirements made most of the Basel III headlines, with Tier 1 [...]
THE TIPSTER September 20, 2010 BP’S NEWS that the Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico has finally been completely capped came as welcome news. The stock has responded well, rising over 1 per cent in early trade yesterday. This could be an opportunity for the oil giant to draw a line under the catastrophe and hopefully regain some of [...]