Spread betting vs. contracts for difference January 3, 2011 THE new year is underfoot, and with European sovereign debt still looking problematic, Chinese inflation sky high and the Federal Reserve still emptying a bathtub of money onto the world, it is looking to be at least as interesting a year as 2010. For ordinary investors, volatility is not very much fun. Most people are [...]
Hunt under pressure over Murdoch links December 22, 2010 CULTURE secretary Jeremy Hunt’s suitability for taking over the media regulation brief was called into question yesterday as cabinet secretary Gus O’Donnell said that he had taken legal advice regarding Hunt’s impartiality. Hunt has found himself thrust into the controversy surrounding business secretary Vince Cable after David Cameron transferred all of Cable’s responsibilities relating to [...]
Lord Browne’s US fund is mulling a bid for auctioned BP assets December 22, 2010 FORMER BP chief Lord Browne is considering buying businesses from his former firm as BP divests assets to raise cash for its US lawsuit. Riverstone, the US private equity house at which Browne is now a partner, is reportedly considering bids for BP businesses being auctioned. Assets include its Canadian natural gas liquids processing facilities [...]
THE TIPSTER December 22, 2010 Although BSkyB and News Corp have been in the news recently because of political upheavals, the big decision has been announced and News Corp has received EC approval for a £7.8bn buyout of BSkyB. BSkyB’s shares have already jumped in response to the news, confirming investor approval. Along with strong promotions such as three months [...]
Cable demotion cheers Murdoch December 21, 2010 James Murdoch, the chairman of British Sky Broadcasting, was said to be “cock-a-hoop” last night, after Vince Cable was stripped of his role in deciding whether the satellite broadcaster can be taken over by News Corp. Sources close to Murdoch, who is also chief executive of News Corp in Europe and Asia, said Cable’s demotion [...]
Culture secretary to rule on BSkyB December 21, 2010 THE OUTCOME of News Corp’s bid to buy a majority stake in BSkyB will be decided by Jeremy Hunt, in the wake of Vince Cable’s comments that he had “declared war” on Rupert Murdoch. The business secretary, who has been stripped of his power to rule on the takeover, will no longer play a role [...]
Cable has lost all credibility, say key critics December 21, 2010 BUSINESS leaders and politicians said that it is now only a matter of time before business secretary Vince Cable is sacked after saying to two undercover reporters that he had “declared war on Rupert Murdoch”. Sir Alan Sugar, founder of electronics firm Amstrad, wrote on Twitter yesterday: “Cameron and his apprentice Clegg will dump Cable soon”. [...]
Barclays chief: Inflation is good December 21, 2010 Incoming Barclays chief executive Bob Diamond told Sky News “a whiff of inflation would be good news for the economy,” yesterday. Inflation rose to 3.3 per cent last month, and inflation expectations have jumped to 3.9 per cent. And 61 per cent of people think rising prices will weaken the economy. “Inflation erodes the value of [...]
Lib Dems gear up for a bumpy ride with Cable on the ropes December 21, 2010 EVEN as the story of business secretary Vince Cable’s indiscretions broke late on Monday, campaigners linked with the the office of Liberal Democrat deputy leader Simon Hughes were frantically sending out press releases. Surely an example of an impressive scale-up of the famously scatty Lib Dem media operation? Er, not quite. “Don’t use King’s Stairs [...]
Cable to rule on Sky after EU approval December 19, 2010 THE EU is set to approve News Corporation’s £7.8bn takeover bid for the rest of BSkyB this week, bringing the firm a step closer to a buyout of the 61 per cent of Sky that it doesn’t already own. Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp has been forced to wait for the European Commission to confirm that [...]