Banks jump on Basel III talk as FTSE hits four-month high September 9, 2010 BRITAIN’S top share index rose sharply yesterday to post a four-month closing high, as US weekly jobless claims fell more than expected and further eased concerns of the United States falling back into recession. Economy-sensitive banks were among the top gainers, up 2.3 per cent, also aided by expectations that the new Basel III capital [...]
Wall Street buoyed by upbeat jobs data September 9, 2010 US stocks rose yesterday as stronger-than-expected jobs and trade data helped lift optimism about the economic recovery, although sentiment was fragile as investors fretted over European banks. Financials, hit hard in the August downturn, were among top gainers as new US claims for unemployment benefits fell to a two-month low, while the trade deficit narrowed [...]
Don’t fritter away your cash on gratuitous advice fees September 9, 2010 MANY a City worker spends her hours turning over millions for institutional or super-rich private clients as a matter of course. But when it comes to managing one’s personal wealth, the right strategy can seem far less clear. The perceived security of an independent financial advisor (IFA) can seem appealing, but the fees of the [...]
PERSONAL FINANCE NEWS September 9, 2010 RETIREMENT ADVICE MOST SOUGHT Almost half of all consumers seeking independent financial advice last month sought assistance with retirement planning, the professional advice website unbiased.co.uk said this week. Retirement planning has remained on an upward trend since May this year. Consumers are also increasingly looking for specialist guidance on investment and savings. Karen Barrett, chief [...]
How to deal with an HMRC letter September 9, 2010 LETTERS have started to drop onto the doormats of Britons advising them that they did not pay the correct amount of tax through the pay as you earn (PAYE) system during the tax years 2008-10. Those affected are likely to be those with complex streams of income. The government argued that the state of the [...]
Making millions from potatoes September 9, 2010 No one has ever written a book about how to make a million from a potato, but Will Chase could. The founder of Tyrrells crisps – the posh ones that brought the vegetable crisp to the tables of the upper middle class – has now turned his hand to vodka, made from the spuds grown [...]
Let your employees Chatter all day long September 9, 2010 SALESFORCE.COM launched a mobile application for Chatter, their “Facebook for business”, this week. An employer would not be alone if she baulked at the thought of her workers checking their friends’ status updates during the working day. Particularly when a study conducted by Peninsula, the employment law firm, has found that 233m hours are lost [...]
Q&A September 9, 2010 Q.I have a business idea. Do I need market research? A.Ideas are great but good businesses are built on finding a niche – and banks will expect to see why your idea is viable. Travers Clarke-Walker, product and marketing director for Barclays Business, says: “doing market research is a good way for a business to [...]
Volatility can add to an ETF’s tracking error September 8, 2010 GIVEN that investors’ prime reason for buying exchange-traded funds (ETF) is to gain exposure to indices, in an ideal world the performance of an ETF ought to reflect movements in the benchmark index as closely as possible. Unfortunately, ETFs do suffer from tracking error, which is defined as a divergence between the performance of the [...]
Bubble, toil and trouble as investors pour into bonds September 8, 2010 WITH government bond yields dropping through the floor, analysts fear that over-egged double dip fears have inflated a bond bubble. A quarter of year-to-date inflows into exchange-traded funds (ETF) have gone into bond funds, so ETF investors should keep a sharp eye on the debate. Bubble alarmists highlight the pace with which investment has rushed [...]