Icap takes a tumble after wary update November 16, 2011 SHARES in inter-dealer broking group Icap suffered yesterday as it said it saw a slowdown in volumes of trades placed by telephone as banks cut their risk appetite towards the end of the year. In a cautious trading update, Icap, owned by former Conservative party treasurer Michael Spencer, said its voice broking volumes had been [...]
Volatility boost couldn’t last forever November 16, 2011 THE RECEIVED wisdom is that inter-dealer brokers such as Icap benefit from market volatility. Unlike dealer banks, which have to manage positional risk, inter-dealer brokers have always been seen as pure volume plays. In August, the stock had a great run as multiple crises in North Africa and Europe gripped markets. On 11 August, the [...]
Private equity needs huge cash injection, says Hands November 16, 2011 PRIVATE equity firms may need to inject some €450bn (£384bn) of new equity into their portfolio companies as wary banks cut back on money they will lend against these assets, Terra Firma boss Guy Hands said in a speech yesterday. Hands, who has been in the spotlight for the collapse of his £4bn EMI deal, [...]
US debt hits £15 trillion as cut-off looms November 16, 2011 BUDGET talks in the US Congress were locked in stalemate yesterday as Democrats and Republicans waited for the other side to make a new offer on taxes and healthcare. As the US’s debt pile crossed the $15 trillion mark, members of a 12-member “super committee” fought to find some $1.2 trillion (£764bn) in budget savings over [...]
Beazley cheers with stable losses despite catastrophes November 16, 2011 LLOYD’S insurer Beazley said it had kept its losses from the spate of catastrophes worldwide under control yesterday but pulled back from taking on new business this year. Dublin-based Beazley said disasters such as the Japanese earthquake in March and tornadoes across the US in May cost it an estimated $183m (£115m) – a figure [...]
GMB and Ucatt vote for strikes November 16, 2011 A day of national strike action came a step closer yesterday when members of the GMB and Ucatt unions voted in favour of striking on 30 November. GMB, which has almost 610,000 members, said its workers voted by four to one in favour of a strike over pensions, on a turnout of 33 per cent. [...]
FinnCap closes 12 deals since May November 16, 2011 Small cap City broker FinnCap said it had stayed profitable in the past six months despite the falling and volatile stock market yesterday. In a trading update it said it had completed 12 secondary fundraisings for clients since May, raising £40m, and grew its secondary commissions by 40 per cent compared to a year ago, [...]
Revenues rise at Norton Rose as banking and litigation shine November 16, 2011 REVENUES at international law firm Norton Rose have risen seven per cent over the first half of the year, it said yesterday, boosted by strong performances in its litigation and banking arms. “Contributing factors vary from country to country, but overall litigation has been strong and banking has performed well,” said group chief executive Peter Martyr [...]
Pinsent Masons latest law firm to lift turnover November 16, 2011 CITY law firm Pinsent Masons also delivered a positive six-month update yesterday, saying turnover for the first half of the 2011-12 year had hit £105m – a six per cent increase from last year. Managing partner David Ryan said: “While it is still a difficult economic environment, we have made a good start to the year. [...]
Barratt stays upbeat due to higher prices November 16, 2011 SHARES in Barratt Developments rose seven per cent yesterday after the housebuilder said it was on track to report a “significant” improvement in its full-year profit, boosted by higher reservation rates and selling prices. The UK’s largest housebuilder said the average weekly number of reservations for new homes rose by 25.9 per cent in the [...]
