Best of the Brokers August 29, 2012 AMLIN Numis upgraded Amlin to “add” from “hold” and raised its target price by 60p to 445p after the insurance firm last week reported it returned to profit in the first half of the year. L’OREAL Canaccord Genuity retained its “sell” rating after the firm posted half year results on Tuesday, and kept its target [...]
Miners weighed down by copper price slip as quiet FTSE ends lower August 29, 2012 BRITAIN’S blue chip shares fell yesterday in very light trade as uncertainty over the outlook for the global economy and the next moves by central banks prompted many investors to stick to the sidelines. Miners were the standout fallers, off 2.2 per cent, weighed down by a drop in the copper price. Global growth worries [...]
Light trading in US ahead of Jackson Hole August 29, 2012 US stocks edged higher yesterday in the lightest trading of the year as investors waited for a key speech by Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke on Friday. Daily volume this week has been very low, even for a seasonally slow period, with the market recording three of the four lowest volume full sessions of 2012. [...]
Clegg’s confused narrative offers no remedy to Britain’s problems August 29, 2012 DIFFERENTIATION is increasingly the centrepiece of the Liberal Democrats’ political strategy. Back in the halcyon days of May 2010, as Nick Clegg and David Cameron flirted together in the Rose Garden, the over-arching message was about how much the LibDems and the Conservatives had in common. But as the coalition has struggled towards the halfway [...]
Romney’s wife goes on a charm offensive to woo female voters for Mitt August 29, 2012 JUST hours after New Jersey’s 50 delegates officially made her husband the Republican Party’s presidential nominee, Ann Romney took to the stage in Tampa to give a stoic defence of her husband’s business career, his values, and most of all, his credentials to be the next President. Her remarks were, initially at least, so well [...]
Catalonia’s bailout tests Madrid’s rule over Spain’s regions August 29, 2012 CATALONIA’S decision to seek a bailout from the Spanish government was just a matter of time. With over €5.7bn (£4.5bn) of debt maturing before the end of the year, Spain’s wealthiest – but also most heavily indebted – region had very little chance of paying its bills without some form of external assistance. The request [...]
Should UK business leaders be awarded honours for simply “doing the day job”? August 29, 2012 YES Philip Salter No one could defend the stifling corporatism that has penetrated our political system. As such, Bernard Jenkin and the rest of the public administration select committee are right to be calling for the secretive honours system to be opened up to scrutiny. However, the committee is wrong to suggest that business people [...]
Rapid Responses August 29, 2012 Swede dreams [RE: Sweden turns the page and Scandinavian noir explains why, Tuesday] It is worth adding that Sweden is also successful because of eight decades of close cooperation between the state, business and unions. Moody’s recently reaffirmed Sweden’s AAA rating and cited not merely its comparatively modest supply-side reforms but also its equal society. Alexander [...]
Cook: England can still recover to win this series August 28, 2012 ENGLAND captain Alastair Cook insists his team can still win the series and return to top spot in the one-day international rankings after South Africa comfortably inflicted their first defeat in 11 matches. The 80-run victory at Southampton’s Ageas Bowl last night handed the tourists a 1-0 lead after the second of five matches, and [...]
Walcott waits for Arsenal exit after rejecting new contract August 28, 2012 ARSENAL are facing the loss of a third key player this summer after England winger Theo Walcott rejected the latest contract offer from the Gunners. Manchester City are thought to be ready to bid for the 23-year-old, with Arsene Wenger forced to sell a player he signed as a teenager or risk losing him for [...]
