Best of the Brokers October 29, 2012 JULIUS BAER UBS has upgraded the Swiss bank from “neutral” to “buy” with a target price of SwFr39, saying it likes “the scale argument and changing regional profile” of the recent Merrill Lynch wealth unit. LOK’N’STORE Panmure Gordon has raised its target price on the storage firm from 126p to 137p and maintained a “buy” [...]
Europe hurt by fears over the storm’s impact October 29, 2012 EUROPEAN stocks fell yesterday, led by insurers on expectations a huge hurricane in the United States would boost damage claims, while political jitters in debt-laden Italy cast shadows on the Eurozone. Reinsurers Swiss Re and Hannover RE led a weaker European insurance sector index as the market tried to predict the cost of cleaning up [...]
UK stocks dip as Hurricane Sandy hits insurers and energy shares October 29, 2012 BRITAIN’S leading shares dipped in low volume yesterday as concerns over the costs of Hurricane Sandy in the United States added to uncertainties about future corporate earnings. Many investors were sticking to the sidelines ahead of a pick-up in the UK third-quarter earnings season this week, notably from the energy and banking sectors. Insurers were [...]
Cameron should wield the UK veto and block the EU’s bloated budget October 29, 2012 THIRTY years ago, Margaret Thatcher secured reforms to the European Economic Community’s budget – including the UK rebate – which have since saved taxpayers a total of some £65bn. She defied those who said this was impossible by standing firm, defending the national interest and fighting hard on a political and intellectual level. Negotiations are [...]
The austerity myth: Why the government is counting on unrealistic growth October 29, 2012 REGULAR readers of this column will be familiar with the theme of a paper I’ve just published. Called In Search of Austerity, and published by the Mercatus Center, part of George Mason University in the US, it probes the idea that there is far less austerity going on than people think. It’s a controversial topic. [...]
A radical proposal for privatising the UK’s road network October 29, 2012 GOVERNMENTS have used motorists as a cash cow for decades. Fuel duty and road tax raise around £35bn a year, while less than £10bn is spent on road maintenance and improvements. As motoring taxes have increased, investment in new road capacity has collapsed. Transport policy has gradually become dominated by an agenda that seeks to [...]
Will a merger between Penguin and Random House better place the firm to tackle Amazon? October 29, 2012 YES Lizzie Carr The merger of Penguin and Random House is ultimately about the survival of the fittest. Publishing is going through revolutionary changes, and this merger shows just how much some brands will need to adapt to survive in today’s marketplace. Given the size of the two companies, there are some obvious cost-savings the [...]
Rapid responses October 29, 2012 Tax nightmare [Re: How income tax has become such a nightmare for so many, yesterday] The main problem with Britain’s income tax system is that government gets larger with every tax rise. It’s about time we tried doing things the other way round. Jeremy Poynton Whatever problems our tax system causes, Labour would do nothing [...]
The impact on markets of devastating job cuts October 29, 2012 CORPORATES are wielding the axe, and blood is being spilt on both sides of the Atlantic. Bloomberg data reveals that US companies have announced 158,100 layoffs this year – up 23 per cent from 2011. But the problem isn’t isolated to the US. Ford announced 1,400 UK job cuts just last week and UBS, which employs [...]
Drug maker needs a high October 29, 2012 PHARMACEUTICAL giant GlaxoSmithKline will announce its third quarter trading results tomorrow. The drug maker has had a mixed year, and shares currently lie towards the middle of their 52-week range. GSK has appointed headhunters to find a replacement for Sir Chris Gent, who had been chairman since 2005, and traders will want details about when [...]
