BNP Paribas tops market and outperforms rivals August 7, 2008 BNP Paribas the French banking giant, reported a 34 per cent fall in second-quarter net profits as it beat expectations to outperform some of its closest rivals, sending shares up by as much as 6.3 per cent. France’s largest listed bank reported a net profit of €1.51bn (£1.18bn) for the quarter, down from €2.28bn, as [...]
Passengers desert BA for cheap rivals August 7, 2008 British Airways carried 94,000 fewer passengers in July than in the same month last year. The airline blamed high oil prices, subsequent ticket price increases, and the worsening economic environment. The drop, during what is traditionally peak-season, came from non-premium ticket sales. Passenger load factor – the measurement of how full flights are – dropped [...]
Standard Life boosted by pension sales August 7, 2008 Standard Life announced soaring first-half profits yesterday as it increased pension sales worldwide. Operating profit at the Edinburgh based insurer rose 51 per cent to £535m in the first half, fuelled by pension sales and the transfer of £6.7bn of annuity liabilities to Canada Life International Reinsurance. Worldwide life and pensions new sales rose 5 [...]
Investor backs Michael Page directors August 7, 2008 Michael Page, the recruitment firm that received an approach this week from Swiss rival Adecco, is worth “significantly” more than its current share price, its biggest shareholder said yesterday. Standard Life investment director of UK equities Lesley Duncan said: “We are fully supportive of Michael Page’s management. The strategy they have been pursuing will, we [...]
Freddie Mac posts fourth loss in a row August 7, 2008 Freddie Mac, the US mortgage giant whose near-collapse led US Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson to introduce emergency rescue measures for banks, announced losses of $821m (£421m) in the second quarter yesterday. It was the company’s fourth successive loss, as increasing numbers of homeowners failed to make loan repayments in the worst US housing slump since [...]
IMF cuts growth forecasts August 7, 2008 The International Monetary Fund yesterday cut its forecasts for the next two years and warned it wouldn’t “take much of a shock” for growth to become negative. It now predicts that the economy will grow by 1.4 per cent in 2008 and 1.1 per cent in 2009 – well below the 1.75 per cent it [...]
Bid looms for Terry Smith’s London bank August 7, 2008 Stockbroker Collins Stewart gets a £250m takeover approach from mystery bidder Small cap stockbroker Collins Stewart, founded by City veteran Terry Smith, has received a preliminary takeover approach from a mystery bidder thought to be at between 110p-115p a share. Shares in Collins Stewart, which have lost nearly half their value in the last six [...]
Wall Street giants face huge fines August 7, 2008 Citigroup pays out $100m to settle US charges that it marketed debt fraudulently Top City firms could face huge fines after Citigroup yesterday agreed to pay the New York authorities $100m to settle charges it marketed US auction debt fraudulently. The banking giant also agreed to buy back $7.5bn (£3.75bn) of illiquid securities by November [...]
At long last it is all over as Ronaldo says: ‘I’m staying August 7, 2008 Winger finally commits his future to Manchester United, ending Real’s chase Cristiano Ronaldo has at long last drawn a line under a summer of transfer speculation by insisting: I’m staying at Manchester United. The Portuguese winger has been a long-running target of Real Madrid, even though United have repeated stood firm, insisting he wasn’t for [...]
Sir Alex has something up his sleeve, I’m sure August 7, 2008 Sir Alex Ferguson’s stance that he won’t be delving into the transfer market during this August window just doesn’t quite ring true with me. With Cristiano Ronaldo already out for the opening month or so of the season, the last thing Sir Alex wanted was to see any more of his squad sidelined for the [...]
