Defensives beat a retreat as investors hedge their bets June 9, 2009 THE FTSE 100 ended flat yesterday, with commodity stocks tracking gains in raw material prices as the dollar eased but cigarette makers and pharmaceutical companies fell. The index closed down by 0.43 points at 4,404.79 in a choppy session, after losing 1.2 per cent on Monday. The weaker dollar boosted metal prices, which in turn [...]
Multinationals facing legal piracy challenge June 9, 2009 THE military dictatorship holds down oil-producing areas such as Ogoni by military decrees and the threat or actual use of physical violence so that Shell can wage its ecological war without hindrance.” So read Ken Saro-Wiwa’s closing statement at his trial before he and eight other leaders of the Ogoni people were hanged by the [...]
HOW POUND IS BUFFETED BY POLITICS June 9, 2009 BORIS SCHLOSSBERGDIRECTOR OF CURRENCY RESEARCH, GFT THE currency market often reacts with more force to political news than it does to economic data. Currencies represent nations as well as economies so traders would do well to remember the golden rule of FX trading: in head to head combat, politics almost always trumps economics. Political instability [...]
Defender of the realm June 9, 2009 THE FACTS: Land RoverDefender 90 XSStation Wagon6-speed manual PRICE (MODELTESTED): £26,8150-62MPH: Figuresnot availableTOP SPEED: Figuresnot availableMPG COMBINED/CO2: 28.3/266g/km A FEW years ago I was in mid-Wales for a weekend of tyre-testing, speed and lessons in the laws of physics with Welsh rally driver Mark Higgins and his team at the Forest Experience School. Having been [...]
Fears of Baltic contagion are threatening krona’s health June 9, 2009 FOLLOWING Eastern Europe’s liberalisation in the early Nineties, the three Baltic states led the way in shifting towards an open market economy. They experienced stronger growth rates, lower unemployment and were more successful in bringing down inflation to manageable levels compared to the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) countries. All three managed to peg their [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS June 9, 2009 LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE (LSE)Analysts at Bernstein upgraded the LSE to “outperform” with a target price of 950p, based on the potential for cost-savings, a low interest rate environment and a strong post-trade environment to drive stock outperformance. The broker believes that consensus earnings for the group are understated and forecasts four per cent above average [...]
CLIPPED WINGS June 9, 2009 AUSTRALIAN flag carrier Qantas expects demand for passengers to drop by five per cent next year, it said yesterday. Chief executive Alan Joyce said it would cut capacity and expected next year to be “very tough.”
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS June 9, 2009 DawsonsThe law firm has hired Stephen Morrall as a new partner to its expanding corporate commercial team. Morrall joins from Middleton Potts, where he worked for over 20 years. He has a particular interest in cross-border M&A, joint ventures, banking and cross border security, international trade and employment law. Morrall will also help the firm [...]
IG profits soar as markets stabilise June 9, 2009 SHARES in IG Group got a lift yesterday after the spread-betting firm said that it expects its full-year adjusted pre-tax profit to rise by 29 per cent to £125m, boosted by higher fourth quarter revenues. The group said in a trading statement that a strong rally in the equity markets led to higher client trading [...]
My crush is ruining my concentration June 9, 2009 DEAR VEXED: I’m working hard and am on track for promotion. The only problem is that a beautiful woman has joined the company and I cannot stop thinking about her. You could call it a crush – I’m worried it’s an obsession. I can barely concentrate. What should I do? Mark, 32, wealth manager FIRST [...]
