FTSE slumps as Greek default fears spark a flight from risk September 19, 2011 BRITAIN’S leading shares erased much of last week’s gain after concern Greece will baulk at the austerity cuts needed to secure fresh bailout cash, and instead nosedive into a disorderly default, prompted a flight from risk. Banks were among the worst-hit sectors yesterday as international lenders ratcheted up the pressure on Athens, saying it must [...]
Mooted deal gives late lift to stocks September 19, 2011 US stocks fell yesterday but staged a late comeback after fears of a looming Greek debt default diminished on news of a possible deal to advance new bailout funds to Greece. Stocks spent most of the session sharply lower after European leaders disappointed investors by failing to come up with any new solutions to the [...]
The entwined fortunes of Greece and EU banks September 19, 2011 AS European banking shares continue to take a knock, it is clear that the fortunes of many of Europe’s major banks are inextricably linked with the fortunes of the Eurozone. Should a Eurozone country default on its debt obligations, it is likely that it will take a number of banks down with it – namely [...]
RALLIES TURN TO DECLINES AHEAD OF FED September 19, 2011 GLOBAL equity markets rallied sharply last week. The initial catalyst came from rumours that China stood ready to purchase Italian debt. Then stocks shrugged off worries about the credit-worthiness of the largest French banks, after German Chancellor Merkel and French President Sarkozy insisted that Greece will remain a member of the Eurozone. Greek Prime Minister [...]
Gold traders need to tread with caution September 19, 2011 EUROPE’S central banks are back on the yellow metal, after two decades of shunning the barbarous relic. They are late to the table – traders have been making money going long on gold for years. There are still profits to be made, but in volatile markets timing is everything. Leveraged traders will have to act [...]
THE TIPSTER September 19, 2011 ON the daily chart, Xstrata looks to be forming a bear flag which could be a signal for the next move lower. However, the bulls have done well to keep the stock supported around the £10 level as recently any dip below here has led to a bout of buying pushing it higher. Capital Spreads [...]
A former Liberal Democrat spin-doctor says Cable’s off message on executive pay September 19, 2011 THE Liberal Democrats have spent much of their conference getting themselves into a sweat about the rich. Both Nick Clegg and Danny Alexander have signalled their reluctance to scrap the top rate of income tax, with the latter announcing the creation of 2,000 new tax collectors to ensure compliance among high earners. Don’t expect that [...]
Why Ocado isn’t delivering as the markets hoped September 19, 2011 WHEN Ocado came to the market in July 2010, to some (its investors) it was a great opportunity to buy into a growth online market with a unique business model and amazing technology. The company had been going for ten years and was just about to break through the tipping point, which would lead profits [...]
We need banks to fail more often – not less September 19, 2011 THE Independent Commission on Banking (ICB) has spoken, but not too loudly and with no real urgency. Even if its main recommendations are eventually adopted (such as ring-fencing the retail and investment arms of banks and raising capital requirements), few people feel that this will fix the banking sector’s problems. Even if these measures work, [...]
RAPID RESPONSES September 19, 2011 ICB bright side The ICB report was puerile: a politically-inspired piece of financial vandalism. But with regulatory damage both capped and deferred, notwithstanding the dire macro outlook and dysfunctional political landscape, we still believe that we are into a (bumpy) period of UK bank share price recovery, but one in which, in relative terms, the [...]
