Morgan Stanley slumps to fourth quarter loss in 2011 January 19, 2012 MORGAN Stanley sank into the red at the end of last year, losing 15 cents per share in the fourth quarter and delivering dismal shareholder returns of just 3.9 per cent for the whole of 2011. The bank was hammered by a series of hefty one-off charges and a collapse in underwriting revenues at the [...]
Italian banks rely on ECB for over €51bn in long-term funds January 19, 2012 ITALIAN banks were forced to plug a funding gap of at least €51.4bn (£42.9bn) in December by taking out three-year loans from the European Central Bank (ECB). The revelation comes from calculations by Morgan Stanley analysts, who compiled data about which European lenders made use of the unprecedented offering of long-term cash by the Eurozone’s [...]
Kodak snaps and files for bankruptcy January 19, 2012 KODAK’S moment has come to an end, as the company yesterday admitted defeat in the face of an increasingly digital age by filing for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Citigroup has thrown the dwindling company a $950m (£614m) lifeline to support Kodak through its ongoing operations, which will continue despite the bankruptcy application. Kodak subsidiaries outside [...]
FROM FLASHBULBS TO FAILURE January 19, 2012 1880s The Eastman Kodak Company is founded by George Eastman in Rochester, NY 1900 Kodak launches its $1 camera, the Brownie, with the slogan “You push the button, we do the rest” 1935 Kodak introduces Kodachrome, its first 35mm colour film 1963 The company launches the Instamatic camera, using its new cartridge film. More than [...]
In defence of hedge funds: Institutional investors are giving a vote of confidence January 19, 2012 THE latest hedge fund performance figures show the average fund was down nearly 5 per cent in 2011, and have prompted some to say: “The hedge fund model is broken”. It is worth noting that global shares, according to the MSCI All-Country World Index, were down 9.4 per cent in 2011, but nobody is arguing [...]
Law firms jump the fences in a quest for capital January 19, 2012 EARLIER this week, law firm Irwin Mitchell hired Glyn Barker as its chairman designate. Barker, a 30-year veteran of PwC, built the accountancy giant’s private equity practice and was its vice chairman until the end of last month. In the corporate world, cross-hiring between industries is common – take Chris Grigg’s sideways jump from Barclays [...]
Populist politicians are not markets’ saviours January 19, 2012 WE WILL know we have progressed to a higher level of civilisation when a politician praises a course of action that does not give him more power. On that measure, David Cameron remains as vulgar as the rest of his colleagues. He said yesterday, “many people are questioning not just how and when we will [...]
RAPID RESPONSES January 19, 2012 Fed up of fairness Allister Heath writes that the coalition needs to tackle unemployment while Sara Parker reports that London is now an unemployment hotspot [It’s official: London is now a hotspot of unemployment – business must help tackle it, yesterday]. I own a number of small businesses and in the past year have been [...]
Stocks rise as investors lap up risky debt January 19, 2012 INVESTORS enthusiastically bought Spanish and French debt in auctions yesterday, prompting a mild euro rally and positive stock market moves. France sold €7.97bn (£6.66bn) medium-term debt. The yield on its two-year debt came in at 1.05 per cent, the three-year at 1.5 per cent and the four-year at 1.89 per cent. Those yields are lower [...]
Commerzbank to rely on profits for capital raising January 19, 2012 COMMERZBANK plans to retain earnings and cut risky assets to plug a €5.3bn (£4.4bn) capital shortfall rather than seek a government bailout, although analysts warned it may still need state help if the economy worsens. Germany’s second largest lender said yesterday it had already set aside €3bn worth of the capital it needs to raise [...]
