Mergers can give you stellar profits March 14, 2010 THE financial rumour mill went into overdrive on Friday after whisperings that Rupert Murdoch, the chairman of News Corporation, the global media group, was thinking about buying back BSkyB, the broadcaster he helped to found in 1990. It was mooted that Murdoch might even be willing to pay up to 735p per share, a 20 [...]
CITY INDEX March 14, 2010 Q.Dear Josh, I have been hearing a lot about options, how do they work? A.Options are often considered complicated which, for me, is a misconception. There are two types of options, a call and a put. A call option is the right to buy a particular market at a fixed price on, or before, a [...]
THE TIPSTER March 14, 2010 GREGGS, the bakery chain, has had stellar sales during the economic downturn, as their good value products have appealed to price-conscious consumers. Greggs announces its results later this week, and they should show strong profit growth. IG Index offers a June spread of 419.24p-424.24p. ARM Holdings has seen its share price rise steeply since the [...]
Financial institutions and commodities help London’s top stocks to gain ground March 10, 2010 BRITAIN’S leading share index added 0.7 per cent yesterday, buoyed by strength in commodity issues, supported by trade data from China, and in banks and insurers as Wall Street put in an early advance. At the close, the FTSE 100 was 38.27 points higher at 5,640.57, a 20-month peak, at levels not seen since June [...]
Banking boost cheers up investors on Wall Street March 10, 2010 BANK and technology shares lifted Wall Street yesterday on hopes a revival in business demand will boost corporate profits. Banks’ shares rallied to their highest in 16 months, adding to recent momentum, amid bets an improving economy will stoke loan demand. “The natural conclusion investors are making is, if the economy is turning, financials are [...]
Gain an insight into markets by looking at yield curves March 10, 2010 MOORAD CHOUDHRY HEAD OF TREASURY, EUROPE ARAB BANK WHILE not necessarily as zealous as Ronald Ryan – the preface of his 1997 book Yield Curve Dynamics contains the immortal line “God bless the yield curve” – I happily and enthusiastically recommend that all investors, whatever their market, pay careful attention to the yield curve, its [...]
THE TIPSTER March 10, 2010 HOMEBUILDER Barratt Homes is proving an interesting punt at the moment after speculation that rival Persimmon is mounting a bid of 170p per share. Barratt would make an interesting purchase as it is trading at a significant discount to its net asset value and has a large bank of land. ETX Capital is quoting 122.21p-122.79p. [...]
Gold isn’t the only metal to shine this year March 10, 2010 THE recent wobble in the financial markets highlights the fragile state of the economic recovery. One minute risky assets looked like they will perform strongly, and the next investors were rushing to safe-havens. What investors look for in this environment is a safe-haven asset with risk-like characteristics. Platinum and palladium could be just the ticket. [...]
Inflows into ETFs can guide future success March 10, 2010 ANNIVERSARIES are dominating the thoughts of investors this week. Yesterday marked 10 years since the Nasdaq crashed in the wake of the dotcom bubble. And a year ago this week, the US and UK stock markets both troughed, heralding the start of an almost miraculous rise in equities over the past year which many observers [...]
INVESTORS’ GLOSSARY March 10, 2010 TIME DECAY This refers to the ratio of the price of a covered warrant relative to its time to expiry. A covered warrant is referred to as a wasted asset, which means its value deteriorates over time. For example, a covered warrant entitles the holder to purchase stock at a specified price (strike price) on [...]
