Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro threatens “bourgeois parasite” Heinz management over “sabotage” of economy December 2, 2015 Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has threatened to arrest senior members of the food group Heinz for "sabotaging the national economy". The country's leader, who earlier this year arrested a number of businessmen for "conspiring" to create long queues outside their shops, went on TV last night to warn that an inspection would be carried out against the "bourgeois [...]
Cigars bring the stars into Canary Wharf’s smokey awards party December 2, 2015 Canary Wharf doesn’t usually have the honour of entertaining London’s celebrity set. The City’s younger sibling is more used to seeing John McFarlane than Jonathan Ross, but there is one thing that brings the capital’s high-flyers together: expensive booze and cigars. To Boisdale of Canary Wharf, where the grandiose dining hall played host to the annual Celebrity Cigar Smoker [...]
Aberdeen Asset Management, Ideagen, Hammerson: Best of the Brokers for 2 December 2015 December 2, 2015 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com IDEAGEN Thanks to a recent £4.9m Award Decision Notice from a UK public sector body, business is looking rosy for software solutions company Ideagen, which derives more than three-quarters of its revenue from the governance, risk and compliance sector. Analysts at Finncap [...]
Lenders buoy FTSE 100 after stress over tests fades – London Report December 2, 2015 A buoyed banking sector after passing Bank of England (BoE) stress tests yesterday pushed the FTSE 100 upwards, making up for underperforming European indices in the previous session. Financial stocks added nearly 20 points to a 39.56 point advance for the blue-chip index, which was up 0.6 per cent at 6,395.65 by the close. Barclays’ [...]
Return of the dividend: Growth might be muted in the UK, but foreign firms are paying out December 2, 2015 The UK has a very good track record when it comes to companies paying dividends. Businesses understand the importance of looking after shareholders, who in turn understand the value of either reinvesting those dividends (which account for two-thirds of total returns over the very long term) or using them to supplement an income. So it’s [...]
Three of the best business books to read this Christmas: Nothing says “glad tidings” like a book on nudge theory December 2, 2015 Whether you need help deciding how many mince pies it is optimal to eat this Christmas, or how John Lewis has survived revolutions in the retail sector, City A.M. has been compiling a list of some of the best business books to enjoy over the festive period. Here are three. THINKING IRRATIONALLY Historically, the [...]
MPs raise new concerns around the funding of local authority care provision December 2, 2015 The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has raised concerns about the funding of local authority care services in a new report due out today. The report, which reviews how the Care Act has been implemented so far, warns that “carers and the people they care for may not get the services they need because of continuing [...]
Bank of England signals end of the financial crisis era December 1, 2015 The Bank of England has declared the banking crisis officially over, and yesterday sent Britain’s biggest lenders a dovish message on future capital requirements. Following the publication of a biannual Financial Stability Report, the UK's central bank signalled an “inflection point” that marks the conclusion of the post-financial crisis era. Bank of England governor Mark Carney said British [...]
Would you make an evening meal of it at Starbucks or Pret? No? Then how about Greggs or Subway? December 1, 2015 Starbucks and Pret a Manger have started trialling late-night opening hours, offering their customers evening menus and even serving wine and beer. YouGov assessed the attitudes and opinions of more than 60,000 consumers to evaluate whether high street coffee outlets are really an attractive venue for dinner and drinks. The blunt answer is “not yet”. Almost [...]
Bank of England to act if needed on the buy-to-let market December 1, 2015 The Bank of England (BoE) has said it’s ready to act if it feels the booming buy-to-let mortgage market is getting out of control. Threadneedle Street’s Prudential Regulation Authority said it was reviewing banks’ lending criteria. The market for buy-to-let mortgages has ballooned 10 per cent in the first nine months of this year. Although there [...]