THE TIPSTER WATCH THOSE RESISTANCE LEVELS May 17, 2009 HOPES of the recovery rally continuing apace were dashed on Friday when the FTSE 100 closed down, putting last week’s losses at 1.9 per cent. The blue-chip index has struggled to stay consistently above the 4,400 mark, a key psychological barrier that the market will continue to target this week. Any strong break through resistance [...]
BETTER DATA DOESN’T MEAN A RECOVERY May 17, 2009 CONFUSION between better-than-expected data and good data – and there is a huge distinction between the two – may have made traders over-optimistic about the pace of recovery. But the markets crashed back down to earth last week as investors started to doubt whether there had been any green shoots at all. To be fair, [...]
Index reshuffle is chance to make a substantial profit May 17, 2009 INDEX reshuffles, at least in Britain’s FTSE indices, don’t tend to spark much more than some token interest among the trading community. The process is deliberately as transparent as possible and well publicised in advance in order to minimise any dramatic share price movements ahead of the rejig. Unfortunately for spread betters looking to capitalise [...]
MP expenses scandal has cut general election odds May 17, 2009 THERE is nothing like a good political scandal to get the blood flowing. Watching Question Time last week was a bit like watching Doctor Who when you were a child – best done from behind the sofa and through the fingers. Never has there been so much fury against politicians. The atmosphere is even worse [...]
Beware green shoots: the bears will still beat the bulls May 17, 2009 THE fragility of the “green shoots” recovery theory that has seen the FTSE 100 rise almost 30 per cent since its 9 March low, came to a shuddering halt last week as it lost 2.6 per cent, breaking its five-week winning streak. The blue chip index is now stuck in the middle of a tug [...]
BILL OF THE WEEK May 17, 2009 IF anyone out there believed elaborate dinners were going out of fashion in these straitened times, think again. Friday night, and four guests rocked up at the Lanesborough hotel’s Apsleys restaurant for Dom Perignon champagne, exquisite Scavino Barolo Annunziata Reserva wine, lobster spaghetti, veal and Dover sole. But it was after dinner, when they retired [...]
CELEBRITY CIRCUIT BECKONS FOR THE BEEB’S RESIDENT HEARTTHROB May 17, 2009 THAT Robert Peston just keeps popping up on the celebrity circuit. The BBC business editor has enjoyed something of a meteoric rise to fame since his scoop about the crisis at Northern Rock back in 2007 – so much so that he even managed to scoop eighth place in a recent Britain’s Sexiest Brains poll, [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS May 17, 2009 CARPHONE WAREHOUSEMorgan Stanley upgrades its price target for Carphone Warehouse to 185p from 173p citing its decision to buy Tiscali’s UK operations. It sees Carphone as an “attractive” investment, which remains one of the only retailers (alongside Debenhams) that it believes is undervalued by the market. It notes demerger plans are also now well advanced. [...]
CITY MOVES Who’s switching jobs May 17, 2009 Bank of New York MellonThe banking group has appointed Timothy F. Kearney as its new head of global client management and chairman of Europe. Kearney will also retain his existing role as co-chief executive of BNY Mellon asset servicing, though he will relocate from New York to London to take up his new position. He [...]
BT bosses face no bonuses if they fail to meet standard performance targets May 17, 2009 TELECOMS firm BT will claw back executives’ bonuses, it emerged yesterday, should they fail to meet performance targets. The news comes after BT announced a crisis in its corporate services arm, more job losses and cut its final dividend last week. BT’s annual report, due to be published on 27 May will outline the details [...]
