Chinese factory recovery on the up in November December 2, 2012 RECOVERY in the Chinese manufacturing sector sped up in November, according to official statistics out yesterday, though growth was still only moderate. The official manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) – a prominent business survey – hit 50.6 in November, a seven-month high, and up from 50.2 in October. But the figure was still only slightly [...]
Angela Merkel open to Greek debt haircut December 2, 2012 GERMAN Chancellor Angela Merkel yesterday said the Eurozone powerhouse would be willing to consider forgiving some Greek debt, if the troubled country brought its budget into surplus. But even if everything went to plan, Greece wouldn’t be turning a surplus until at least 2014-5, Merkel pointed out, leading opposition politicians to accuse the chancellor of [...]
Reputational crises hit value of firms’ shares December 2, 2012 REPUTATIONAL crises such as a products recall or environmental disasters involving a listed companies are a bigger threat to shareholder value than loan defaults or rogue employee behaviour, a study out today reveals. A survey of 16 global stock markets conducted by law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer shows operational crises – such as the Gulf [...]
Ministry of Sound boosts profit on back of strong brand label December 2, 2012 MINISTRY of Sound, the iconic dance record label and nightclub co-founded and chaired by ex-City worker James Palumbo, doubled its pre-tax profits last year after reaching nearly £40m turnover for its core business, accounts show. The company, which is made up of a record label, bar, publishing and clothing arms, said turnover for the 12 [...]
Fund industry could take up to a decade to alter fees model December 2, 2012 ASSET managers could take five to 10 years to change their business models to reflect the push towards lower fund manager fees, the chief executive of the Investment Management Association has said. Daniel Godfrey, who takes over from departing chief executive Richard Saunders today, told City A.M. fee levels would be determined by market forces [...]
City Moves | Who’s switching jobs December 2, 2012 ECU Group Antony John has been appointed chief executive at the currency management firm. He joins from BNP Paribas FundQuest, where he was chief executive officer. John has also held senior roles at Investment Manager Selection and Lombard Odier. Barclays The bank has announced the appointment of Hayley Rees as head of the infrastructure and [...]
Best of the Brokers December 2, 2012 BREWIN DOLPHIN Peel Hunt has a “buy” rating and target of 185p ahead of the investment manager’s full-year results on Wednesday. The broker expects broadly flat fee income as the firm gets on with its repositioning. NATIONAL GRID Morgan Stanley rates the utility “overweight” and raises its target from 730p to 775p, with a regulatory [...]
FTSE ends week little changed November 30, 2012 The FTSE 100 closed down slightly today, as mid-session gains vanished by the end of the day. The flagship index was down 0.06 per cent at 5,866.82 but November still finished as one of the best-performing months of the year for London stocks. The markets were hit by this afternoon’s release of figures showing record-high [...]
German parliament agrees bailout deal November 30, 2012 German lawmakers approved the latest bailout for Greece today by a majority believing a Greek bankruptcy could lead to the break-up of the euro zone. 473 of the 584 deputies in the parliamentary chamber voted for the bailout, which aims to cut Greece’s debt load to 124 per cent of national output by 2020. Michael [...]
French government eyes deal with ArcelorMittal November 30, 2012 The French government and steel producer ArcelorMittal are hopeful of closing to a deal to avoid a temporary nationalisation of a steelworkers, ahead of a midnight deadline. ArcelorMittal, controlled by Britain’s richest man Lakshmi Mittal, says two furnaces at the site in north-eastern France are not viable but Socialist President Francois Hollande wants them kept [...]