Construction sector leader calls on government to do more to amid spiralling material prices August 1, 2016 The construction sector is being battered by high material prices, a weak pound, private sector uncertainty and a lack of public housing investment, the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) said today. In the week that sees two of the largest building suppliers release their results, the FMB said that two-thirds of bosses were anticipating further rises in material costs [...]
The state of Europe’s banks is far from steady August 1, 2016 Bank investors rejoice! The European Banking Authority (EBA) has declared stress tests should no longer be about pushing fresh capital into the system or drilling down into asset quality. No. The good news is that “steady-state monitoring” is what’s needed. So will this provide the assurance investors need? I’m not convinced. Even if stock prices [...]
Tom Hayes’ crowdfunding campaign breaks £30,000 mark August 1, 2016 The crowdfunding campaign to raise money for Tom Hayes' legal fees has broken the £30,000 barrier. The Fundrazr campaign, which has been set up to support the former UBS and Citigroup traders' appeal to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), has now raised £30,705, or 20 per cent, of its £150,000 target. The campaign had been stalled [...]
This bank feels fine about the Brexit vote so far August 1, 2016 While June's Brexit vote gave most of the banking sector a beating, one industry giant has revealed its business is doing fine, for the time being at least. Citigroup has revealed it is yet to feel its business be seriously shaken by June's Brexit decision. A regulatory filing published today noted Citigroup had "not experienced any significant negative impact [...]
Satellite operator Inmarsat won’t make an offer for rival Avanti August 1, 2016 Inmarsat won't be making an offer for Avanti, it's said today following media reports that the two could come together in a £4bn takeover. The satellite operator – recently expelled from the blue-chip FTSE 100 index – put an end to speculation begun by Sky News on Friday that it was considering making a bid for its smaller rival. [...]
HSBC’s online banking is down August 1, 2016 HSBC is suffering technical problems, leaving customers unable to access online banking services. The issue arose around 3pm according to Downdetector, which has had more than 900 reports of issues so far. HSBC said its service is currently unavailable, but did not elaborate on the reason behind the issue. The issue is also affecting First Direct, the [...]
Lack of summer blockbusters calls cut on AMC Entertainment’s second quarter profits August 1, 2016 Global cinema giant AMC Entertainment's profits and sales dived in the second quarter after the operator was blighted by a dearth of blockbuster hits and lower footfall. The figures AMC's total revenues fell seven per cent to $764m (£577m) in the second quarter ended 30 June. This was down from $821.1m in the same period of last year, [...]
Verizon is buying this Irish GPS company for $2.4bn August 1, 2016 Verizon's buying spree hasn't ended with Yahoo. Verizon has now made a cash offer for Irish GPS vehicle tracking company Fleetmatics for $2.4bn (£1.8bn). The US telecoms giant is looking to expand into internet connected devices as it grows its business away from its core mobile market. Fleetmatics' shares leaped by 39 per cent to $59.69 following the announcement, though investors sent Verizon shares down by 0.1 [...]
London still open for business but firms need reassurance from government, warns CBI August 1, 2016 London firms are standing strong despite Brexit vote uncertainty, but reassurance from government is needed urgently, a study out today has found. In a survey of 186 firms which was carried out after the referendum, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and CBRE found two-fifths (41 per cent) intended to stick with their investment plans and [...]