And they’re off: Shire fires the starting gun on 2016’s takeover action with Baxalta deal January 12, 2016 Shire and Baxalta have agreed on their $32bn (£22bn) merger after six months of negotiations, sending Shire's share price plummeting 7.25 per cent yesterday. Despite impressive pre-market gains in New York, Baxalta shares also fell, down 1.55 per cent. Baxalta shareholders will receive $18.00 in cash and 0.1482 Shire shares per Baxalta share, amounting to [...]
Two companies, $20bn in combined revenue, 100 countries, and six things you need to know about Shire and Baxalta’s merger January 11, 2016 Shire spent six months trying to woo Baxalta's board, here's all you need to know about the long-awaited $32bn (£22bn) merger in six points: The deal The merger is the third largest pharma deal by a UK company, and the 16th biggest pharma deal ever, according to Dealogic's data. In the UK it is only beaten by the mega-mergers that created [...]
Euribor rigging trial: £1m bail requested for Christian Bittar as six of 11 ex-traders accused appear in court January 11, 2016 Former Deutsche Bank employee Christian Bittar, who appeared in court today over accusations regarding the manipulation of the Euro Interbank Offered Rate (Euribor), has been ordered to pay bail security of £1m. Bittar, who was represented by David Cameron's brother Alexander Cameron QC and will turn 44 years old tomorrow, was one of the six ex-traders who attended Westminster Magistrates’ [...]
Total value of derivatives held FTSE 100 companies rises to £1.1trillion, almost two-thirds of UK GDP January 11, 2016 The value of derivatives held by FTSE 100 companies increased by 27 per cent in 2015 from £890bn to £1.1 trillion-worth of assets, according to data from Banc de Binary. A derivative is a financial product with a price determined by the value of another asset, such as stocks, currencies or commodities, which can be [...]
UK grocers Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Tesco set to show their hand in Christmas battle for sales January 10, 2016 The winners and losers of the battle for this winter’s Christmas dinner will be laid bare this week as Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Tesco prepare to report tough trading amid intense competition in the grocery sector. Morrisons will report its Christmas trading figures on Tuesday, with the Bradford-based chain expected to post a two per cent decline [...]
Euribor trial: 11 former Barclays, Deutsche Bank and Societe Generale employees set for first court appearance over rate fixing allegations January 10, 2016 Nearly a dozen people accused of manipulating a key rate of lending between European banks are due to make their first appearances in court this week in the latest of several rate rigging prosecutions brought by the Serious Fraud Office. 11 former employees of Barclays, Deutsche Bank and Societe Generale will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday over alleged manipulation of the Euro Interbank Offered Rate (Euribor). The men and [...]
Financial Conduct Authority interim chief executive Tracey McDermott says regulator isn’t “going soft” on banks January 9, 2016 The Financial Conduct Authority is "not going soft on banks", its interim chief executive Tracey McDermott said after the regulator dropped probes into the banking industry. Speaking to the BBC, McDermott said: "We're not going soft on the banks, we're not being told what to do by the government. We have objectives which are set for [...]
At the close: FTSE 100 index falls further to cap off a bad week January 8, 2016 The FTSE 100 index fell again on Friday, finishing just under 6,000 to cap off a bad week, as concerns over the Chinese economy continued to weigh. "A turbulent start to 2016 has seen investors adopting the brace position, as a combination of factors have driven global markets lower," Richard Hunter, head of equities at Hargreaves Lansdown, said. "With [...]
FTSE 100 index remains under 6,000 mark as fears over the Chinese economy linger January 8, 2016 After the FTSE 100 index faltered in late morning trading, it has rebounded back towards the gains it made at the open – but still remains below the 6,000 mark. The rebound comes as concerns over weakness in the Chinese economy continue to weigh on European markets. The UK's blue-chip index rose 0.44 per cent to 5,979 points in early afternoon [...]
Tesco share price soars after Barclays upgrades to buy recommendation January 8, 2016 Tesco's share price soared five per cent this morning after Barclays upgraded its rating on the stock to buy. Barclays moved its weighting from equal weight to overweight, saying recent declines in its share price had now lowered the stock to attractive levels. [stockChart code="TSCO" date="2016-01-08 11:45"] It also believes there are improvements to the [...]