US investors turn to defensive stocks May 12, 2011 DEFENSIVE shares led a rebound in US stocks yesterday as investors weighed mixed economic signals and commodities volatility. The Dow industrials fell nearly 100 points in the morning but recovered later after a lacklustre auction of 30-year US bonds and reports suggesting negotiations to raise the US debt ceiling had intensified. Financial shares fell after [...]
FTSE 100 sinks below 6,000 as banks and miners tumble May 11, 2011 COMMODITY and banking stocks dragged the FTSE 100 back below the 6,000 level yesterday, with these sectors pressured by Greece’s debt problems and uncertainty over global economic growth. London’s blue chip index closed down 42.89 points, or 0.7 per cent, at 5,976.00, having hit a one-week closing high on Tuesday. Atif Latif, director of trading [...]
Commodities lead Wall Street down May 11, 2011 US stocks almost erased a three-day rally yesterday as energy and commodity shares sank, feeding worries over the market’s ability to stay on an upward path. The second major breakdown in commodities in a week fuelled selling in other risky assets, including stocks. A stronger dollar and data showing a rise in US fuel supplies [...]
Climb the career ladder faster in a growing business May 11, 2011 IT SEEMS like people are becoming successful faster these days. The Forbes list of young CEO billionaires is enough to make most of us feel we should be getting richer, quicker. But how do these young whipper-snappers get there so fast? Iain Martin, the 43 year-old chief executive of the fast growing Moonpig.com (see rankings [...]
Turn that frown upside…. it could make you money May 11, 2011 THE POWER OF NICE BY LINDA KAPLAN THALER AND ROBIN KOVAL Random House, £7.99 WHILE it is laughable to read a Donald Trump quote on the front cover of a book called The Power of Nice, one should not write it off straightaway. This charming book is just badly marketed – ironic considering that was [...]
Forget investing in an Isa, try lending to a total stranger May 11, 2011 HAVE low interest rates finally driven us mad? Thousands of people are lending money to complete strangers over the internet through social lending sites. The concept is quite frankly cool. Lenders and borrowers deal directly with each other, borrowers get lower rates and lenders get higher returns. It’s becoming a big business. Zopa – the [...]
Don’t worry, the party in commodities isn’t over yet May 11, 2011 COMMODITIES took a big knock in the recent correction, but the fundamentals still point towards continued rises over the medium term. Assuming you aren’t planning to fill your home with sheep, soybeans and platinum, with certain provisos, commodity funds can offer you a route in. THE PARTY ISN’T OVER Investors who joined the commodity party [...]
Strong miners propel FTSE to a one-week closing high May 10, 2011 THE FTSE 100 share index hit a one-week closing high yesterday after bumper Chinese trade data boosted miners, although analysts said sentiment could be soured if Beijing opts to tighten its monetary policy. China’s April consumer price inflation index, due today, is expected to have dipped from March’s 32-month high of 5.4 per cent to [...]
Utility firms push US stocks higher May 10, 2011 US stocks rose for a third day yesterday, led by utilities and other defensive sectors that may drive further gains as investors bet on profit growth and set aside concerns about weakening demand. For now the equity market is filtering out potential problems involving Eurozone debt and speculation that the recent selloff in commodities is [...]
Sterling looks weak but not as frail as the euro and dollar May 10, 2011 STERLING has had a tough year. An underwhelming recovery and loose monetary policy from the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) have had their impact, neither of which looks to be imminently reversed. But bad as things are, the monetary authorities in the US appear to be wedded to keeping interest rates lower for longer than the [...]
