Catlin trumps forecasts after a disastrous year February 9, 2012 PROFITS at insurer Catlin plummeted by 82 per cent in 2011 after it was forced to absorb nearly $1bn in catastrophe-related claims. The firm, operator of the biggest syndicate at Lloyd’s of London, announced a year-end profit of $71m, down from $406m in 2010. This still beat analysts’ expectations, reflecting the strength of Catlin’s reinsurance [...]
Losses rise at Och-Ziff’s hedge funds February 9, 2012 OCH-ZIFF Capital Management Group’s quarterly profit fell as its performance income plunged last year when wild market swings left some of its portfolios in the red. Calling 2011 “particularly volatile”, chief executive Daniel Och said yesterday dramatic market movements made for the most difficult conditions since 2008. But he also said things have improved in [...]
Global revenues at law firm DLA Piper top $2bn for first time as growth pays February 9, 2012 WORLDWIDE revenues at law firm DLA Piper have passed $2bn (£1.26bn) for the first time, thanks in part to aggressive expansion plans that recently saw it become the world’s largest law firm by headcount. Global gross revenue at the firm in 2011 was $2.25bn, while profits per equity partner – a popular way of judging [...]
SVG set for boost from a £50m share buyback February 9, 2012 PRIVATE equity investor SVG Capital said asset values recovered some lost ground in the final quarter of 2011, as the company launched a £50m tender offer to buy back shares yesterday. Private equity firms are under pressure as tough trading conditions and volatile stock markets, against which they benchmark their investments, weigh on their privately-owned [...]
Factory jump raises chance of a recovery February 9, 2012 UK MANUFACTURING output jumped higher than predicted in December, data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed yesterday, leading some economists to suggest the economy may be back on the track to recovery. The production industries as a whole, which includes manufacturing, mining and energy, registered a small rise in output in the month [...]
Repossessions forecast to rise February 9, 2012 HOUSE PRICES are set to fall in 2012 as unemployment rises and household income stays depressed, according to yesterday’s forecasts from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) and today’s LSL house price index and e.surv mortgage monitor. The weak economic outlook is also set to push up repossessions as more borrowers fail to keep up [...]
OECD calls to lift spending on disadvantaged schools February 9, 2012 MANY school leavers lack basic skills, and one fifth of UK pupils drop out of the education system before finishing their A-levels, a report from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) revealed yesterday. Dropout rates range from two per cent in South Korea to 58 per cent in Turkey, with the UK in [...]
UK trade deficit plummets to nine-year low as imports take a sharp tumble February 9, 2012 IMPORTS fell sharply in December and exports expanded slightly, taking the UK’s trade deficit to its lowest level since 2003, figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed yesterday. The deficit in goods and services fell to £1.1bn for the month, compared with £2.8bn in November. In goods, the deficit fell from £8.9bn to [...]
Jobless claims slide in the US as the economic outlook starts to brighten February 9, 2012 THE NUMBER of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, suggesting recent gains in employment are being sustained. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 15,000 to 358,000, the Labor Department said yesterday. A four-week average of new filings, which provides a better view of the trend, hit its lowest level [...]
Chinese prices hit easing hopes February 9, 2012 China’s annual inflation spiked to a consensus-busting 4.5 per cent in January as spending jumped during the Lunar New Year holiday season, breaking a five-month softening trend and forcing a market rethink of policy easing expectations. The size of the seasonal distortion makes the January data particularly hard to read, but economists say it is [...]
