Banking bulls ought to turn their gaze to Wall Street March 21, 2010 BANKER bashing remains a favourite political pastime – but investors have become a little more upbeat towards the sector, and for good reason. Indeed, a recent global fund mangers survey conducted by Bank of America-Merrill Lynch revealed that banking is no longer the least-liked sector, handing this rather dubious accolade over to utilities. Even the [...]
SPREAD BET GURU March 21, 2010 JOSHUA RAYMOND MARKET STRATEGIST josh@cityindex.com Q. Dear Josh, this week chancellor Alistair Darling gives his budget. Is there likely to be much market reaction? A. The market always has the ability to move both during and at the end of a budget speech, depending on what is said. The share prices of tobacco firms, for [...]
THE TIPSTER March 21, 2010 THIS week the focus will be on Wednesday’s Budget and its political ramifications for the upcoming general election. The Labour Party will have been given a boost by last week’s encouraging public finances and Lloyds Banking Group’s announcement on Friday that it expects to turn a profit this year. But is it too little, too [...]
FTSE gains limited by the Budget March 21, 2010 EUROPEAN stock markets are headed for a positive start to the week, with the FTSE set to continue its current winning streak after closing at its highest level since June 2008 on Friday. However ahead of the pre-election Budget on Wednesday, any further gains are likely to be moderate. GFT is forecasting the UK’s FTSE [...]
THE WEEK AHEAD March 21, 2010 IMPROVING sentiment over healthcare might not be enough to overcome anxiety that is now buffeting Wall Street as investors look for new catalysts to push ahead a year-long rally in US stocks. In the coming week, housing will be a dominant theme with the release of February existing home sales tomorrow and a report on [...]
FTSE closes flat as miners and banks fall, while pharmaceuticals gather pace March 18, 2010 BRITAIN’S top shares ended flat yesterday as banks and miners paused for breath after recent gains, offsetting a rally in drugmakers and energy stocks. The FTSE 100 finished almost unchanged at 5,642.62, having closed at a 21-month closing peak on Wednesday. Banks and miners slipped after recent strong gains, with Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland [...]
Dow Jones gets a boost as Boeing shares take off March 18, 2010 THE DOW industrials rose for an eighth consecutive session yesterday, lifted by a rise in Boeing’s stock, while a mixed group of economic figures kept the broader Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500 in check. Boeing, up 2.2 per cent at $70.87, gave the Dow its biggest boost. Boeing is the Dow’s best-performing stock so far [...]
A big success in any language March 18, 2010 OF all the things you might expect to see in a language-teaching classroom, a piano is perhaps not high on the list. But that’s one of the most noticeable objects in Yalan Chuang’s office in King’s Cross, where she teaches businesspeople Chinese. “It is a very musical language, some words are spoken like a soprano [...]
Incubators helping new firms to grow March 18, 2010 BONUS cuts, the recession and upcoming tax hikes for high-earners are tempting more and more City folk to start their own businesses. Indeed, Sturgeon Ventures, an “incubator” firm which specialises in helping people to establish their own businesses in the financial services sector, has seen a 10-fold increase in the number of enquiries from City [...]
FLOTATION March 18, 2010 Q. I am thinking about selling shares in my business to raise capital. Should I consider a public listing? A.The chief benefit of a public listing is that it can provide you with an injection of capital. Also, a listing can help raise the profile of the company. However, a public listing will change the [...]