Labour Party split over AV April 26, 2011 A FIGHT broke out between Labour grandees last night, as opponents of changes to Britain’s electoral system fought back against supporters. Former home secretary David Blunkett lashed out at Lord Mandelson, telling him he was “wrong” to label the “No to AV” campaign a Conservative cause. The former business secretary had waded into the fray [...]
Housing market faces years of gloom April 26, 2011 IT may not feel that way in some parts of Greater London but the housing market remains stuck in the doldrums. This is not surprising: the great housing bubble of the noughties hasn’t finished deflating yet. The readjustment process is continuing, with prices falling in real terms – and there is still a decent way [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING April 26, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES EUROPE TELECOM GROUPS TARGET GOOGLE Leading European telecoms companies want to levy significant charges on Google and other online content providers through an overhaul of the regime governing how data travel over the internet. Operators in Europe complain that they are contending with an explosion of data on their networks, much of which [...]
Sentance urges rate rise April 26, 2011 BANK of England hawk Andrew Sentance used his swansong speech yesterday to warn that the UK’s persistently high inflation rate could damage the Monetary Policy Committee’s (MPC) credibility. Sentance, who has repeatedly called for an interest rate rise, told a Pro-Manchester lunch that global economic growth and the pound’s depreciation had pushed inflation higher, while [...]
Rival NYSE bid tempts investors April 26, 2011 Nasdaq OMX Group and IntercontinentalExchange have called on NYSE Euronext stockholders to ask the company’s directors to start talks on its bid, which it said is superior. The open letter to NYSE shareholders yesterday is the latest salvo in Nasdaq and ICE’s effort to win support for their takeover.
Troubled JJB to de-list from LSE April 26, 2011 JJB, the high street sportswear retailer, is to de-list from the London Stock Exchange’s main market and re-list on the smaller, cheaper AIM market. The struggling firm will issue 160m new shares to raise £65m, breaking listing rules relating to how much of the company is freely floated.
Citi to hire new 500 new bankers April 26, 2011 US bank Citigroup is planning to hire more than 500 bankers over the next two years in an effort to catch up with rivals. The bank has lost ground on other Wall Street giants, and will seek to redress its position through a hiring spree. A spokesperson for Citi said: “We plan to hire approximately 500 people [...]
Funds flow to UBS as client trust returns April 26, 2011 SWITZERLAND’S biggest bank UBS saw a surge in new fund inflows in the first three months of 2011 as it reported better-than-expected first-quarter results yesterday. Clients placed SwFr11.1bn (£7.6bn) of net new funds with UBS’ wealth management division, the highest level since the end of 2007, as trust in the bank returned. The result marked [...]
Oswald Grübel has got the Swiss tanker moving in right direction April 26, 2011 UBS is best thought of as a huge army tanker, which was hurtling at high speed in completely the wrong direction when Oswald Grübel took the controls in 2009. First he had to bring it to a halt, by stopping the firm hemorrhaging client cash in the face of a highly-damaging US tax probe and [...]
Glencore tries to tame its new outspoken chair April 26, 2011 COMMODITIES trader Glencore knew it would be entering an unpredictable world when it appointed 71-year-old former French legionnaire and mountain climber Simon Murray to be its chairman earlier this month ahead of its multi-billion pound flotation. Even so, Murray’s comments over the past few days have raised more hackles than the most sceptical City adviser [...]
