Worries over slow demand for EFSF debt November 2, 2011 THE FIRST bond issue by Europe’s bailout fund since it was given new powers was postponed yesterday on fears that there is not enough investor appetite for its debt. Initially the fund, the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), had planned to raise €5bn (£4.3bn), before cutting the size of the issue to €3bn earlier this [...]
Eurozone PMI falls but stocks bounce November 2, 2011 MARKETS rallied yesterday after a dramatic fall on Tuesday as the possible implications of a Greek referendum were digested by the markets. In stocks, the DAX rose 2.25 per cent to 5,965.63, the CAC 40 moved up 1.38 per cent to 3,110.59 and the FTSE followed suit, up 1.15 per cent to 5,484.10. In the [...]
BoJ eases bank funding trouble November 2, 2011 WORRIES over European financial woes pushed the Bank of Japan into lending dollars to banks yesterday. Responding to increasingly tight lending the Bank supplied $2m (£1.25m) to a one-week operation and $100m in a three-month operation. Bankers in Japan believe a foreign bank with operations in the country needed the facility. “This is probably a [...]
Greek CDS soar on referendum November 2, 2011 CREDIT default swaps (CDS) on Greek debt shot up yesterday as Greece confirmed it was looking to hold a referendum on the EU bailout package. Five-year CDS soared 45.36 per cent, because investors saw an increased chance of an official “credit event”. If a haircut on private holdings of debt is “voluntary”, CDS are not [...]
G4S investors wait for chair to step down November 2, 2011 SHAREHOLDERS in G4S believe chairman Alf Duch-Pedersen may step down within the next two days without further prompting in the wake of the botched attempt to buy Danish cleaning group ISS. City A.M. understands that while some shareholders have said they will not call for Duch-Pedersen’s head as a consequence of the failed £5.2bn takeover [...]
City of London Corporation puts its legal challenge on ice November 2, 2011 THE CITY of London Corporation has put its legal bid to evict the Occupy London protesters on ice while it digests the church’s astonishing U-turn. There are now fears the campsite surrounding St Paul’s could remain until the 2012 Olympics. Meanwhile, City A.M. has learned the City of London Corporation has held meetings to discuss [...]
Yahoo considers selling minority stake to private equity company November 2, 2011 YAHOO is contemplating the sale of a minority stake to a private equity firm followed by a large share repurchase, in a bid to buy time to turn the firm around, people familiar with the matter have said. The once-dominant internet pioneer has seen its share of the US internet search market fall while Google [...]
Labour accuses Osborne of hypocrisy on Tobin tax November 2, 2011 GEORGE Osborne, the chancellor, was accused of hypocrisy over his position on a Tobin tax yesterday, after City A.M. revealed he had doubts over such a levy despite publicly saying he would support one if adopted globally. Chris Leslie, the Labour shadow Treasury minister, said: “For all his warm words in public about backing an [...]
Capital rules to hammer banks’ assets – PwC November 2, 2011 BANK CAPITAL increases proposed by regulators could force European banks to reduce their assets by €1.8 trillion if they cannot raise it by other means, PwC claimed yesterday. “If the European banks are required to increase their capital ratio by one per cent and are unable to raise the capital to do this, they would [...]
Eight months of pressure that left Osório exhausted November 2, 2011 QUESTIONS were raised yesterday over the man brought in as the miracle-worker who would execute a speedy turnaround of bailed-out banking giant Lloyds. Expectations could hardly have been higher when the appointment of António Horta-Osório, former CEO of Santander UK, was announced, almost precisely a year ago. He rode a wave of admiration in the [...]
