House price slump not finished yet March 6, 2012 HOUSE prices fell again in February, reversing January’s rise and continuing the slow downward trend of the year. Prices dropped 0.5 per cent in the month, following January’s 0.6 per cent rise, taking the average price to £160,118. Over the last three months, prices are down 1.1 per cent, and 1.9 per cent on February [...]
Do you think the UK is becoming more protectionist? March 6, 2012 Ed Miliband has called for a new “Made in Britain” label to encourage people to buy British. The government has asked British firms to stop hiring foreign workers instead of British ones. And multinational firms say they are finding it hard to bring in talent from abroad due to the immigration cap. So what do [...]
CITY VIEWS: WOULD YOU BE MORE LIKELY TO BUY SOMETHING MADE IN BRITAIN? March 6, 2012 MARK WILLIAMS | PEEL HUNT “No. What an absurd idea. Items should be made in countries that have a competitive advantage. Making goods in the UK is ridiculous, unless they are specialised high-value items.” RICHARD THOMAS | GATEHOUSE BANK “No. It might work for tourists but it is unlikely to appeal to British consumers. For [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS March 6, 2012 Peel Hunt The independent full-service broking and advisory house has announced the appointment of Charles Batten. Batten is a highly regarded name in UK mid and small cap corporate advisory with over 30 years’ experience in M&A, corporate broking and equity capital markets at Lehman, Dresdner Kleinwort and Investec. He said: “Since the buy-out in [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS March 6, 2012 TRINITY MIRROR Deutsche Bank has cut its recommendation on the newspaper group from “buy” to “hold” with a target price of £40, and says it expects the company’s ad trading environment and structural challenges to remain severe. The broker also expects there to have been a widening of the pension deficit in recent months, and [...]
Vince Cable accuses government of ‘lacking vision’ March 6, 2012 Vince Cable has accused the government of lacking “a compelling vision of where the country is heading beyond sorting out the fiscal mess”. The business secretary also called for Royal Bank of Scotland to be split up, saying: “My suggestion is that we recognise that RBS will not return to the market in its current [...]
Lehman surfaces from bankruptcy March 6, 2012 Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc said that it has emerged from bankruptcy and will start paying back creditors on 17 April. A new board of directors will lead the company as it continues to liquidate its holdings and pay back creditors, it said in a statement.
FTSE pegged back by weak resources March 6, 2012 Resource stocks dragged the FTSE 100 backwards in early trading as fears over global growth continued to cast a shadow over markets. Higher oil prices triggered by the West’s tussle with Iran also added to the uncertainty and investor sentiment was weak. London’s blue chip index tracked losses on Wall Street and in Asia with [...]
Japan watchdog files official complaint against Olympus March 6, 2012 Japan’s securities watchdog became the latest authority to file a criminal complaint against Olympus Corp, some former executives and outside advisers over the company’s $1.7bn (£1.1bn) accounting fraud. The Securities Exchange and Surveillance Commission (SESC) said it had requested criminal charges be filed by public prosecutors against individuals involved in dubious mergers and acquisitions used [...]
Meggitt profit surge fuelled by aerospace March 6, 2012 British aircraft parts supplier Meggitt posted a forecast beating 26 per cent rise in full-year profit, helped by growing demand for commercial aircraft. The company, which supplies flight displays and wheels to planemakers Airbus and Boeing, reported a 2011 pre-tax profit of £323m on sales 25 per cent higher at £1.45bn. The FTSE 100 group [...]