Metro Bank shares surge on Carlyle Group takeover approach November 4, 2021 Shares in high street lender Metro Bank jumped 35 per cent today after it confirmed it was in talks with funds linked to the Carlyle Group regarding a takeover. Shares are currently up 35 per cent at 139p per share. It added in a statement there was no certainty an offer would be made and [...]
LandSec buys up stake in home of BBC Breakfast for £425m November 3, 2021 UK commercial landlord Land Securities said this morning it had bought a 75 per cent stake in MediaCity, a media and tech hub at Salford in Greater Manchester, for £425.6m. MediaCity was a 50:50 joint venture between Legal & General and Peel L&P, and the latter will now retain a 25 per cent stake and [...]
The next memestock? Avis shares rocket 218 per cent in a single day November 2, 2021 Shares in car rental giant Avis are surging this afternoon after positive earnings data, leading some to compare the jump to those of memestocks Gamestop and AMC. Its stock price is currently trading up 81.5 per cent to $316, after paring some early gains. Avis shares were rallying as much as 218 per cent immediately [...]
Markets: Standard Chartered, Flutter and miners put FTSE 100 in a hole November 2, 2021 The FTSE 100 is down this morning, weighed on by Paddy Power owner Flutter and Asia-focussed bank StanChart. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index eased 0.5 per cent after closing at fresh February 2020 highs yesterday, while the UK-centric mid-cap index slipped 0.2 per cent. Miners BHP, Rio Tinto and Anglo American were among the worst performers on [...]
Fishing row: UK welcomes Macron stepping back from Brexit boat threat November 2, 2021 The UK this morning welcomed France having “stepped back” from threats to impose punitive action in a dispute over post-Brexit fishing licences as talks to settle the row continue. Environment secretary George Eustice acknowledged a de-escalation from French president Emmanuel Macron as he held off on the action against British boats that he had warned [...]
London market boosts insurer Hiscox November 2, 2021 Hiscox this morning said its gross premiums written for the first nine months of the year is up 6.1 per cent to to $3.46bn. Its London market did particularly well, with gross written premiums up 7.1 per cent. Huge weather events continue to play a large part in the global insurance and reinsurance market and [...]
End of furlough ‘has not led to surge in jobseekers’ November 2, 2021 The end of the multi-billion-pound furlough wage subsidy has not led to a surge in new job-seekers, according to data that suggests unemployment is unlikely to rise sharply and may bolster the case for a Bank of England interest rate hike. Data by recruitment website Indeed, seen by Reuters ahead of publication, shows only a [...]
One night in Bangkok (quarantine): Thailand reopens to UK tourists November 1, 2021 After nearly two years of all but a trickle of foreign arrivals, Thailand is reopening to mass tourism, with travellers required to spend just one night in quarantine while they await Covid test results. Hundreds of vaccinated foreign tourists this morning arrived in the Thai capital for quarantine-free travel after the Southeast Asian nation approved [...]
UK investors cheer third quarter dividend windfall October 25, 2021 As supply chain, labour and inflation storm clouds gathered on the horizon, City investors toasted an overflowing dividend pot and the end of this summer – boosted by the FTSE’s mining, oil and banking companies. Total UK dividends soared to £34.9bn in the three months to 30 September, up by nearly 90 per cent on [...]
Clear as mud: EU hints at extension to City’s equivalence deal for euro-clearing October 18, 2021 The EU’s head of financial services yesterday hinted at a possible extension to the post-Brexit carry-over deal which allows banks from the bloc to access clearing houses in the City. Mairead McGuinness told the Financial Times that Brussels was minded to avoid a “cliff edge” situation and avoid market instability. “We have to make sure [...]
