City law firms beat the crunch July 9, 2008 The City’s biggest law firms look set to beat the credit crunch, topping revenues of £1bn last year. All four of the firms that make up the “magic circle” posted earnings over £1bn and showed double digit growth, with Clifford Chance holding the top spot as the world’s largest law firm with revenues of £1.33bn, [...]
Money can still be made during bear market slump July 9, 2008 Even as the market yesterday dipped its toe into official bear territory, there’s still money to be made. Equities may be falling out of favour but currencies, commodities and good old-fashioned cash are still in demand as investments likely to weather the current financial storm. “Depending on your time scale, banking stocks look cheap if [...]
Property meltdown July 9, 2008 A property meltdown loomed yesterday as new figures showed mortgage completions at near record lows and commercial property values falling across the country. The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) said loans for house purchases rose by 4 per cent in May to 52,700, up from 51,000 in April, but were 44 per cent down on [...]
Bollywood Godfather takes on Hollywood July 8, 2008 Anusha Bradley talks to the boss of Eros, the media mogul bent on profiting from the silver screen It goes without saying: Kishore Lulla loves movies. “Indian or Hollywood, I love watching them all. Whether it’s Spiderman, Harry Potter, Shawshank Redemption, or The Godfather – I love the Godfather – they give me a lot [...]
What the FSA’s regulations mean for you July 8, 2008 The new rules might be heavy handed, but they could be to your advantage, writes Katie Hope Hot on the heels of the decision by the FSA, the City’s watchdog, to clamp down on investors using contracts for difference (CFDs) to short shares during a rights issue period, it’s now taken another stab at improving [...]
Russia’s Sibir Energy races towards FTSE July 8, 2008 London-listed mid-sized Russian oil company Sibir Energy said yesterday its full-year pre-tax profit trebled to $344m (£172m) due to higher output at its Siberian unit and strong margins from refining and retail. Sibir said its crude oil production rose 80 per cent in the year to 17.8 million barrels. Most of the output, 15.3 million [...]
Financial jobs boom to fade July 8, 2008 City recruiter Michael Page saw its first-half global profits rise 31 per cent but warned the slowdown in UK recruitment looks set to continue. The global firm posted group half year profits of £135.5m, up from £90.4m last year. Its UK division, which contributes a third of the group’s gross profits, delivered a 3.9 per [...]
Brown: stop wasting food July 8, 2008 Britons can help bring food prices down by cutting the amount they waste every year, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said yesterday. Brown was speaking as he was travelling to the G8 summit in Japan where the rich nations’ club is meeting to discuss rising fuel and food prices as well as global warming. A government [...]
Grim data supports UK recession fears July 8, 2008 Fears a UK recession is inevitable rose yesterday after official data indicated British industrial output had fallen at its sharpest pace in two and a half years in May, while manufacturing output fell by 0.5 per cent compared to April. Data from the Office for National Statistics indicated that UK industrial production fell 0.8 per [...]
Nadal told to rest after epic July 8, 2008 Rafael Nadal began his first day as Wimbledon champion with an order to rest by doctors following his epic five-hour marathon with Roger Federer in Sunday’s final. The Spaniard is still struggling with a knee injury suffered in his third round match against Mikhail Youzhny and will not now defend his Mercedes Cup title in [...]
