Fitch: ECB could pay up to save euro January 11, 2012 A “CATACLYSMIC” collapse of the euro could take place if the European Central Bank (ECB) does not step up bond buying to save Italy from its enormous debts, credit ratings agency Fitch warned yesterday. David Riley, head of sovereign ratings at Fitch, had already warned that Italy could face a downgrade later this month. The [...]
Merkel and Monti try to inspire hope January 11, 2012 SPENDING cuts and economic reforms are making Italy stronger and provide a vital contribution to the stability of the euro, Angela Merkel announced yesterday as she and Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti (both pictured below) tried to persuade investors that Italy was no longer a risky place to put cash. “High interest rates could have [...]
Bond deal close in Greece but deficit target missed January 11, 2012 GREECE is in the “final stage” of negotiations with private bond-holders on the debt swap which should pave the way for a second bailout, according to European Commissioner Olli Rehn. An agreement will be reached “in the coming weeks,” with the vital cash coming shortly after. Despite lying about its finances to join the single [...]
Spain fears looming recession January 11, 2012 Spain is close to recession, budget minister Cristobal Montoro warned on news that Spanish industrial production fell seven per cent in November from the previous year – the most in over two years. The decline had been forecast at just over the five per cent mark after a fall of 4.2 per cent in October. [...]
BlackRock UniCredit stake in focus January 11, 2012 Italian market watchdog Consob is looking into two contradictory statements made by BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, over its stake in UniCredit, a source close to Consob said yesterday. BlackRock said yesterday its holding in the Italian bank stood at 3.09 per cent, retracting an earlier statement which said it had cut its stake [...]
German debt auction success January 11, 2012 Investors seeking a safe haven in which to save their cash enthusiastically purchased new German bonds yesterday. A €4bn (£2.6bn) auction of five-year debt saw twice as much demand as bills on offer. The average yield came in at 0.9 per cent – the lowest since the euro was launched. Germany sold short-term debt at [...]
Taxpayer fear as UKFI execs change again January 11, 2012 THE GOVERNMENT’S faltering attempts to sell its stakes in nationalised banks suffered another blow yesterday when the chairman of the agency responsible for the stakes resigned with a gloomy parting shot at the state of the financial markets. UK Financial Investments said Sir David Cooksey is retiring, with current chief executive Robin Budenberg moving upstairs [...]
NYSE and Deutsche Boerse start last-ditch bid to save $9bn tie-up January 11, 2012 THE CHIEF executive of NYSE Euronext has pledged to fight the “serious flaws” in the argument of the European regulator, which is set to block their $9bn (£5.87bn) merger with Deutsche Boerse. Duncan Niederauer used a video to staff to pledge that he and Deutsche Boerse boss Reto Francioni would continue to press their case after it [...]
Carlyle founders flying high on $400m payday January 11, 2012 THE THREE billionaire founders of Carlyle Group took home more than $400m (£261m) last year as a series of lucratives asset sales helped the US buyout firm to a record performance. William Conway, Daniel D’Aniello and David Rubenstein, received $134m each in cash distributions and $3.8m in executive compensation, according to a regulatory filing in the [...]
Bidders circle Deutsche assets January 11, 2012 Private equity house Advent International has emerged as a bidder for parts of the asset management arm of Deutsche Bank. Blackrock is also believed to be among the firms which lodged “indicative” bids last week. All groups declined to comment. A sale is expected to raise between €1bn (£829m) and €3bn. Up to 50 banks, [...]
