FSA heaps censure on Wills February 17, 2010 WILLS & CO, the 127-year-old City stockbroker, was yesterday publicly censured by the Financial Services Authority (FSA), which said the firm had consistently failed to remedy poor sales practices and properly monitor its advisers despite previous regulatory warnings. The FSA, which has barred Wills from giving investment advice, said the firm would have been slapped [...]
Apple leads the way on mobile phone design February 17, 2010 Apple is casting a long shadow over this year’s Mobile World Congress. The iPhone maker isn’t in attendance – it is far too cool for an annual trade fair – but its name is still on everyone’s lips. For a firm that has just 2.5 per cent of the mobile handset market, its ability to [...]
Stelios uses EasyJet shares as collateral to secure a £5m loan February 17, 2010 EasyJet owner Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou has raised £5m by using shares as collateral for a loan. An unnamed lender accepted 1.27m shares as collateral in a deal arranged by UBS. The arrangement mirrors a deal in September, when Stelios raised £7.5m by using 2m shares as collateral on a loan through Credit Suisse. EasyGroup has [...]
British stocks hold their shine in spite of gloom February 17, 2010 UNEMPLOYMENT is high, the economy is barely out of recession and the UK’s fiscal deficit is cause for concern. Compared to emerging markets where growth is storming ahead, it seems like a no-brainer as to where to invest. Barclays Stockbrokers’ clients agree – half think emerging markets will deliver the greatest returns in 2010 while [...]
Industry rises from the ashes to drive growth February 17, 2010 AMERICAN industry appears to be benfitting from a second wind. As the world’s largest economy emerges from recession, it’s industry that’s leading the way while the service sector is only just managing to hobble back to life. In recent years the US has re-directed its economy towards the service sector and, in particular, the consumer. [...]
DOLLAR AND GOLD SPELL UNCERTAINTY February 17, 2010 STRONG demand for gold from investors in recent weeks has been prompted in part by the current issues surrounding Greece. For much of the past year, if gold was rising then the US dollar was likely to be falling, given that gold is often used as a dollar hedge – especially during the unprecedented monetary [...]
The Tipster February 17, 2010 SOVEREIGN debt troubles had created plenty of turmoil in the global markets, but over the past few days, equity markets have been discounting the negative news flow to stage a bit of a recovery. Traders should be aware that the strength in European equities is often preceded by a good performance in the Asian markets [...]
INVESTORS’ GLOSSARY February 17, 2010 CREDIT DEFAULT SWAP (CDS) A CDS is a derivative instrument that can protect the holder of corporate or sovereign debt from the event that a company or government defaults on their debt obligations. It works like a basic swap: the buyer of the CDS gives the seller a series of payments. In return, the buyer [...]
Good day for blue-chips sees FTSE flirt with the 5,300 level February 17, 2010 Britain’s top share index rose for the third consecutive day yesterday, led by financials and miners on bullish corporate results and economic data, and adding to growing optimism over the health of the global economy. The FTSE 100 ended up 32.58 points, or 0.6 per cent at 5,276.64, touching a two-week high during the session [...]
US shares gain as data boosts mood February 17, 2010 Stronger-than-expected corporate results and upbeat economic data drove US stocks higher yesterday as they fed expectations the recovery will bolster corporate profits. Deere & Co, the world’s largest farm equipment maker, led markets after its results beat expectations and it raised its outlook for the year ahead. Shares gained five per cent to $56.48. The [...]
