Fitch warns UK and US could lose triple-A rating next year December 19, 2012 BRITAIN, the US and France are all at risk of losing their coveted triple-A credit ratings, leading agency Fitch warned yesterday, as all three governments struggle to control their runaway borrowing. It notes the US’s fiscal cliff represents the biggest single problem facing government finances and economic growth next year, though it believes the impending [...]
Knight Capital and Getco to merge making market giant December 19, 2012 KNIGHT Capital, the US market maker which nearly collapsed over the summer after a trading glitch, yesterday said it would merge with its rival Getco Holdings in a $1.8bn (£1.1bn) deal. The tie-up, which will create one of the biggest electronic market makers in the world, will see Knight shareholders receive $3.75 a share, a [...]
ECB ends ban on Greek debt December 19, 2012 THE EUROPEAN Central Bank yesterday lifted a ban and allowed Greek banks to use the country’s sovereign debt as collateral in ECB funding operations, allowing the banks cheaper financing. The lifting of the ban, which has been in place since July, is due to “the country’s progress with reform measures, budget-cutting and privatisations,” the ECB [...]
Co-op poaches new group chief from Kingfisher December 19, 2012 THE Co-operative Group has hired a senior retail executive with no prior financial services experience to be its new chief executive, as it prepares to expand the size of its banking business. The banking and supermarket conglomerate said Euan Sutherland, currently chief operating officer at home improvement retailer Kingfisher, will replace Peter Marks when he [...]
Trading watchdog is criticised over credit fees shortcomings December 19, 2012 The UK’s trading watchdog has been slammed by the National Audit Office (NAO) over its failure to protect consumers from inflated credit fees. A report from the NAO, published yesterday, found that the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) “is not delivering value for money because it is not minimising harm from unscrupulous trading practices”. The [...]
Shoppers delay their Christmas gift purchases December 19, 2012 RETAIL footfall fell sharply in the week to 16 December compared with last year, but improved on the previous week as trading gathered pace in the run-up to Christmas. Shopping centres suffered the worst decline in visitors, with footfall plunging 4.3 per cent on a year ago, the BRC-Springboard Footfall Monitor showed, while out-of-town footfall [...]
Festive trading is slow for UK supermarkets as sales weaken December 19, 2012 SUPERMARKET grocery sales have slowed in the past four weeks, held back by weak general merchandise sales and the continued squeeze on consumer budgets. According to the latest data from Nielsen, grocery sales in the four weeks to 8 December rose 1.3 per cent year-on-year. That compared with a two per cent growth in the [...]
Kodak patents go for $525m December 19, 2012 KODAK has agreed to sell some of its patents to a group including Google and Apple for $525m (£323m). The bankrupt photography firm is selling the patents in order to pay off its massive debts. However, they reached far less than the $2.6bn that had originally been floated. It is selling around 1,100 patents to [...]
Will you christmas shop this saturday? December 19, 2012 ELLA JENKINS | ACCENTURE No, I will be drinking mulled wine with my friends. I bought all my presents online this year to avoid the last minute shopping. In fact, the last one just arrived with the mail. JUDE AWANI | AVIVA Yes, I am late and still have to buy presents for my nephews [...]
Rangers score debut goal on London listing December 19, 2012 SHARES in Scottish football giant Rangers closed at 76p after their first day of trading on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) yesterday, signalling a dramatic comeback for the club. The previous company that owned Rangers fell into liquidation earlier in 2012, but the club was rescued by a re-birth led by chief exec Charles Green. [...]
