Fed: cut harder but slower February 2, 2012 AMERICA’S public finances are “clearly unsustainble”, Ben Bernanke said yesterday – although the Federal Reserve chief advised the government against immediate strong cuts. Referring to the need for fiscal consolidation, Bernanke told the House budget committee that “even more aggressive strategies than have been pursued recently are warranted over the longer term”. Yet he warned [...]
Ban on bonuses looms at Fannie and Freddie February 2, 2012 US SENATORS have voted to block bonuses for directors at bailed-out mortgage financers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. America’s upper chamber moved to ban the payouts, worth nearly $13m, under a bill amendment put forward by Republican John McCain and Democrat John Rockefeller. The bill, approved by a huge majority of 96-3, also needs to [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING February 2, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES RISKY DEBT USE ON REPO MARKET HITS 2008 LEVELS The use of lower-rated debt in a key US funding market has returned to pre-crisis levels, fuelling fears that the so-called shadow banking system is becoming riskier. The repo market is an important part of the shadow banking sector, which consists of unregulated financial [...]
Global vision helps Foster to build profit February 2, 2012 THE DESIGN house run by Lord Foster has increased sales and profits for a year in which it completed a series of major projects in London, Spain and America. Foster + Partners, which is responsible for some of the best-known buildings in the City, took turnover up 18.8 per cent to £159.27m while operating profit [...]
Cash-rich Blackstone hits out at attacks on private equity February 2, 2012 THE PRESIDENT of Blackstone has mounted a vigorous defence against attacks on the private equity industry. Tony James spoke out against “vicious, politically motivated” criticism after Mitt Romney, the former Bain Capital boss, came under fire in the race to be the US Republican presidential candidate. Blackstone, the largest publicly listed alternative asset manager, also reported lower [...]
Debt turmoil tips Deutsche into the red February 2, 2012 DEUTSCHE Bank was plunged into the red by the Eurozone debt crisis at the end of last year, Germany’s biggest lender revealed yesterday. It lost €351m before taxes in the fourth quarter of 2011 due to “extreme market conditions”, the bank said, a dramatic reversal from the same period the previous year, when it booked [...]
BBVA income falls as Spain orders banks to raise cash February 2, 2012 SPANISH bank BBVA yesterday posted a 35 per cent fall in net profit for 2011, as it was hit by provisions for bad property loans at home and a one-off charge on its US business. BBVA’s 2011 net profit fell to €3.0bn. Its bad debts ratio declined to four per cent of total loans, versus [...]
PwC: non-core EU asset value is €2.5 trillion February 2, 2012 EUROPEAN banks are still looking to offload some €2.5 trillion in non-core assets, according to research released today by PwC, suggesting that the region will have to suffer through a flood of more deleveraging before it can produce sustained growth again. But PwC also estimates that lenders will try to jettison loans with a face [...]
Tullow Oil to ditch BAML as its broker February 2, 2012 TULLOW Oil, the FTSE 100 oil explorer, yesterday parted company with its long-standing corporate brokers, Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML) and RBS Hoare Govett, appointing Barclays Capital and Morgan Stanley in their place. BAML’s position had been precarious ever since the bank parted company with corporate broker Andrew Osborne in November. Osborne, whom Tullow described [...]
Munich Re profits slump on the back of natural disasters February 2, 2012 PROFITS at insurer Munich Re plummeted 71 per cent during 2011 after a series of earthquakes and floods hammered the firm’s bottom line. Preliminary figures show 2011 year-end net profit of €710m (£591m), down from €2.43bn in 2010. The company has promised a return to its previous levels of profitability this year, emphasising that almost [...]
