Ofgem sets larger fines May 15, 2014 ENERGY firms could receive far higher penalties for failing to supply enough power under new rules announced by Ofgem yesterday. The regulator argues that the so-called cash out charges currently paid by the companies to network operator National Grid in the case of a shortfall are not high enough. Firms currently pay up to £300 [...]
Equities bounce boosts London Stock Exchange May 15, 2014 THE LONDON Stock Exchange expects more companies and investors to pile into equities, following a year in which revenues at the exchange group jumped 50 per cent and adjusted profits were up 17 per cent. The LSE said turnover topped £1bn in the year ending March, boosted by its purchase of clearing house LCH.Clearnet a [...]
Analyst Views: Having taken stock of the LSE’s results, what is your outlook? May 15, 2014 JAMES HAMILTON | NUMIS Markets remain receptive to IPOs and the regulatory environment continues to favour clearing. Most of the negative impact from lower treasury revenues has now impacted the P&L and the cost synergies are flowing… We believe the LSE is well positioned for this year and beyond. Add. PHILIP MIDDLETON | BANK OF [...]
Gross sales rise by 24 per cent at Old Mutual May 15, 2014 OLD MUTUAL, the Anglo-South African financial group, yesterday posted a 24 per cent jump in quarterly gross sales to £6.2bn. Funds under management rose two per cent to more than £297bn, the FTSE 100 firm said, and clients pulled a net £500m out of its funds, better than the £3.9bn outflows seen in the same [...]
Household wealth tops £9.5 trillion May 15, 2014 THE TOTAL wealth of all private households in Great Britain topped £9.5 trillion between 2010-12, new data showed yesterday, with private property and pensions making up the bulk of Britons’ assets. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), half of all households had total wealth of £218,400 or more during the two year period [...]
Investec’s David Currie leaves to start up Mayfair-based venture May 15, 2014 DAVID Currie, who has headed Investec’s UK investment banking division for more than 10 years, is leaving to establish a new venture called Codex Capital Partners. Codex, which will be based in Mayfair, has been set up to enable ultra-high net worth individuals and family offices to make direct investments. Joining David are two partners, [...]
UK oil output set to fall further as demand expands May 15, 2014 THE UK’S demand for oil rose to a near two-year high earlier this year, while UK North Sea production continues to fall, according to the IEA’s monthly oil report published yesterday. The surge in UK oil demand, which rose to a high of around 1.6m barrels per day in February, helped lift the estimate of [...]
Fears China’s housing bubble could pop as sales slow down May 15, 2014 DIVING property sales in Chinese cities could spell the end of the bull run in the market and knock the Asian country’s economy hard, ING Investment Management warned yesterday. Sales volumes in Beijing and Shanghai fell by 18 per cent and 17 per cent respectively in the first three weeks of April, prompting fears over the [...]
Shopping lifts Japan growth May 15, 2014 JAPAN’S economy picked up sharply in the first quarter, growing by 1.5 per cent in the three-month period. Part of the boost came from a shopping spree as consumers raced to beat the three percentage point hike in VAT in April. “The worry is this spike will induce a hangover in the second quarter, as [...]
Zuck celebrates 2nd IPO-versary May 15, 2014 IT’S BEEN a big week for Mark Zuckerberg. He turned the big 3-0 on Wednesday (sadly we don’t know what the billionaire did to celebrate, we can but imagine) and he could today be celebrating the second year anniversary of Facebook’s initial public offering. On Friday 18 May 2012 Zuck brought his baby to market [...]
