Tax dash boosts home buying April 16, 2012 February saw a sharp rise in the number of first-time buyers, according to figures out yesterday from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), as the stamp duty holiday’s end date in March drew closer. A total of 14,100 loans worth £1.7bn were taken out by first-time buyers in the month, up eight per cent by [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS April 16, 2012 Fleming Family & Partners The private equity firm has appointed two new investment directors. Llewellyn John joins from Nova Capital Management, where he was associate partner. He previously worked at Deloitte from 1999 to 2006, and reached the position of assistant director within corporate finance. Dan Walker has been promoted to investment director, following four [...]
BEST of the BROKERS April 16, 2012 ABERDEEN ASSET MANAGEMENT JP Morgan says that the asset manager remains its top pick in the sector, but notes that its strong performance in the year to date has been driven by estimate upgrades rather than a re-rating. The share price is now 18 per cent higher than at the start of the year – [...]
EPISODE 53 – MR CASHMAN IS MR BANKS April 16, 2012 Noel has taken to calling Emma and me Mr and Mrs Banks, which must make the suitably intimidating but frankly unlovely Maria, Mary Poppins. I’d loved the film as a child and had finally introduced Noel to it on television at Easter. Now I’m beginning to regret it. Noel immediately demanded the DVD, which arrived [...]
Citigroup quarterly profits falls April 16, 2012 Citigroup today reported lower first-quarter profit on Monday as the bank worked to contain expenses in the face of volatile capital markets. The New York-based lender said net income was $2.93bn (£1.85bn), compared with $2.99bn for the same period last year. Revenue from its ongoing securities trading and investment banking declined 12 per cent from [...]
Spain’s debt levels approach crisis levels April 16, 2012 Spain’s debt yields have broken the six per cent level as investors worried about its budget, knocking the euro and sending safe-haven German bonds to a record last set at the height of the euro zone crisis. Signs of slowing global growth also undermined sentiment in commodity markets while European equity markets were mostly in [...]
Miners fuel FTSE gains April 16, 2012 The FTSE 100 was in positive territory in early trading with resilient miners lifting the index despite fears over slowing growth in China Investors were more upbeat after markets were also buffeted last week by fears over Eurozone debt, with eyes focusing on Spain and Italy. However sentiment toward banking stocks remained tepid this morning [...]
GDF agrees £6.4bn deal for International Power April 16, 2012 French utility GDF Suez has agreed to buy the 30 per cent of British power producer International Power it does not already own for £6.4bn, increasing its exposure to fast-growing markets. The 418 pence per share offer, at a seven per cent premium to an earlier approach by GDF, values International Power (IPR) at about [...]
Polar Captal assets jump to £3bn April 16, 2012 Fund firm Polar Capital saw its total assets rise above $5bn (£3bn) after another quarter of client inflows, as a number of investment managers benefit from a rebound in financial markets and investor sentiment this year. The London-based firm, which has been winning clients to its mutual funds while seeing outflows from its hedge funds, [...]
Hedge funds moving away from Mayfair April 16, 2012 London hedge funds are shunning their traditional heartland in Mayfair, the city’s most expensive office neighbourhood, pushed out by straitened financial circumstances and the desire to dump their racy image for something more businesslike. The Mayfair and St James’s district, including the so-called “hedge fund alley” of Curzon Street and Berkeley Square, contains some of [...]