ANALYST VIEWS: HOW SIGNIFICANT ARE THE CML LENDING FIGURES ? September 20, 2010 ALAN CLARKE | UK ECONOMIST, BNP PARIBAS I think the housing market is going from bad to worse. We are seeing confirmation that we are already in a double dip recession for housing, and are going to see falling property prices over the next six months. GEORGE BUCKLEY| UK ECONOMIST, DEUTSCHE BANK We are seeing [...]
WTO predicts record trade during 2010 September 20, 2010 International trade will grow by a record 13.5 per cent this year, bouncing back from a dismal 2009 and signalling an improvement in economic activity around the world, the World Trade Organization (WTO) forecast yesterday. The WTO had predicted in March that trade in merchandise goods would rebound 10 per cent this year as the [...]
Consolidation is imminent as BayernLB eyes WestLB September 20, 2010 BayernLB is interested in snapping up fellow German lender WestLB, a source close to the Munich-based bank said yesterday. The move comes amid a fresh push for consolidation among state-controlled landesbanks in Europe’s biggest economy. “The considerations are at a very early stage,” the source said, adding negotiations are to be held with an open [...]
FSA teams up with US agency to monitor firms September 20, 2010 THE FINANCIAL Service Authority (FSA) has signed a deal with one of its US counterparts in a bid to more closely supervise the world’s largest securities firms and markets, it said yesterday. The FSA signed a memorandum of understanding with the US Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) on 15 September, agreeing to share information on [...]
Lib Dem revolt overshadows Clegg speech September 20, 2010 NICK Clegg launched an impassioned defence of his decision to cut a power sharing deal with the Tories yesterday, after his party issued a stinging rebuke over the coalition’s education plans. Speaking in his keynote address to the Liberal Democrat party conference, Clegg said the party had not “lost its soul” by signing up to [...]
Cracks start to appear in the coalition over business plans September 20, 2010 THE two sides of the coalition look set to clash over a string of key business issues, according to a British Chamber of Commerce (BCC) survey of MPs. One potential battleground is the forthcoming appointment of outgoing HSBC chairman Stephen Green as full-time trade minister. Around 62 per cent of Tories are in favour of [...]
Compton role put on hold September 20, 2010 PAUL Compton, the former Toscafund hedge fund manager, is still waiting for FSA clearance before being able to take up his new role at the small companies broker WH Ireland. Compton, who worked at Merrill Lynch and Collins Stewart before joining Toscafund, has had the summer off waiting to assume his new role at WH [...]
Safran pens deal with BAE for L-1 September 20, 2010 FACE-RECOGNITION software maker L-1 Identity Solutions is being sold to Safran and BAE Systems, two top European defence firms. French group Safran confirmed a $1.09bn (£701m) cash deal to buy the US security company and its core biometric business in a move that will also see British defence company BAE Systems extend its reach in [...]
EU targets commodity speculation September 20, 2010 EUROPEAN markets supremo Michel Barnier yesterday said he was prepared to crack down on speculation in the commodities market, as he called for greater transparency in bond and derivatives trading, and dark pools. He used his speech on reform of the EU’s Markets in Financial Information Directive (MiFID) rules to announce plans to examine pre-trade [...]
CITY VIEWS: SHOULD 9,000 PUBLIC SECTOR WORKERS BE PAID MORE THAN THE PRIME MINISTER? September 20, 2010 AZHAR KHAN | NOMURA “Given the importance of our PM’s role and the decision making involved, his salary does not make economic sense to me. I think he deserves to be compensated more.” GARETH MORTIMER | ADVANTAGE PROFESSIONAL “I think it’s understandable. It seems like rather a high number. It certainly doesn’t bother me that [...]
