Land Registry figures show house prices in slight decline September 28, 2009 LAND Registry figures yesterday showed a slowdown in the pace of annual decline in house prices, with a 9.4 per cent drop in August after an 11.7 per cent fall in July and as much as 16 per cent in February. The figures came on the same day property data company Hometrack said the annual [...]
Burford Capital plans listing to raise 200m to fund legal cases September 28, 2009 COMMERCIAL dispute financier Burford Capital yesterday said it plans to float on London’s Aim market by placing shares worth up to £200m. The investment company, registered in Guernsey, is headed by Sir Peter Middleton, the former Treasury official and chairman of Barclays. Dealings are expected to take place on or around 16 October the company [...]
IMF to raise its forecasts September 28, 2009 THE INTERNATIONAL Monetary Fund has boosted hopes for an early exit from recession by saying it is to raise its global growth forecasts in the next few days. IMF deputy director Murilo Portugal said yesterday the Fund is to raise its forecast for 2010 global growth to around three per cent, compared to the current [...]
New evidence on CEO pay rebuts Darling September 28, 2009 LET us, for once, put the emotion and anger to one side. What real, rigorous, academic evidence is there supporting the view that bonuses caused or were a significant contributor to the financial crisis (rather than other factors being to blame, such as ultra-loose monetary policy or flawed risk models)? The answer: very little. In [...]
Madoff’s UK staff probed September 28, 2009 Criminal charges may be brought against some of the London employees of fraudster Bernard Madoff by the end of this year, the Serious Fraud Office has said. Senior British prosecutor Richard Alderman said: “I’m advised by the team that we can expect charges before the end of the year”. Alderman added that investigators were looking [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING September 28, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMESEDF JOB CREATES A HEADACHE FOR VEOLIAThe board of Veolia Environnement was meeting yesterday evening to weigh up the consequence of the nomination of Henri Proglio, long-time boss of the world’s largest water and waste group as the head of EDF, the French state controlled nuclear operator. Directors have been asked not only to [...]
Yen soars on intervention pledge September 28, 2009 The yen yesterday hit an eight-month high against the dollar after Japan’s finance minister appeared to tone down comments suggesting he would intervene to stem its recent rise. The currency reached 88.23 yen per dollar – the highest since January’s 13-year high of 87.10.
King’s Swedish trip hurts pound September 28, 2009 The pound dropped further yesterday after it emerged that Mervyn King last week visited Sweden to hold talks with its central bank, known for its radical negative interest rates. News of the meeting reinforced concerns the Bank is planning to alter the rate it pays on commercial banks’ reserves.
UK firms set to rush LSE listings September 28, 2009 Smaller UK firms are from next week expected to bombard the London Stock Exchange to take advantage of an FSA rule change making them eligible for a less costly and rigorous “secondary listings” that will allow them to raise money quickly. But only firms with full compliance procedures will be included on FTSE indices.
Class action lawsuit hits BoA bosses September 28, 2009 INVESTORS in a class-action lawsuit against Bank of America (BoA) over the Merrill Lynch takeover are trying to collect “billions of dollars” in damages, Ohio’s attorney general said yesterday. Attorney General Richard Cordray spoke after filing a 155-page complaint in Manhattan federal court that accuses BoA of fraudulently concealing Merrill’s soaring losses even as it [...]
