Chinese manufacturing contracts for second consecutive month October 1, 2012 Chinese manufacturing fell for the second straight month in September, fuelling fears that China is continuing to struggle in the face of low demand from the US and Europe. The Purchasing Managers’ Index rose modestly to 49.8 in September from 49.2 in August, the lowest reading since November 2011. A reading below 50 indicates contraction. [...]
Fallon to shame top banks into lending more September 30, 2012 BANKS will be named and shamed if they do not increase lending under the enterprise finance guarantee scheme (EFG), business minister Michael Fallon warned over the weekend in a letter to the UK’s five big banks. The government has offered guarantees of up to £500m on loans to small firms, but the new business and [...]
More diverse financial services are critical to restoring trust in UK banking September 30, 2012 THE business of politics and the politics of business are rarely more intertwined than during the party conference season. Last week, the City of London was in the crosshairs of the Liberal Democrats, and it is likely to remain in sharp focus as Labour takes the stage in Manchester today. We all know that the [...]
FTSE 100 up on Spain’s austerity budget September 28, 2012 The leading share index opened up this morning. Headline mining shares rose as metal prices rallied. Spain’s austerity budget, unveiled yesterday, settled Eurozone nerves and dragged the FTSE 100 up, as the index went back above the 5,800 level in early trading. Aquarius Platinum topped the leaderboard this morning, up almost five per cent. Engineering [...]
What the other papers say this morning September 27, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES China buys into UK student housing A fund controlled by the Chinese government is set to buy a 40 per cent stake in the UK’s largest developer of student housing as Beijing continues to expand its portfolio of global infrastructure. Gingko Tree Investment, a London-registered Chinese state-owned fund, is understood to be closing [...]
Barclays to open new gold vault September 27, 2012 Barclays is set to open the first British bank-owned gold vault in over five years on the back of heightened gold ownership. The firm’s new vault anticipates demand from pension funds, central banks and sovereign wealth funds who have been scooping up the precious metal that has doubled in value since late 2008. The vault, [...]
PPI fuels surge in complaints about banks September 27, 2012 BANKS defended their customer service reputation yesterday as figures showed that complaints have soared nearly two thirds in the last six months, fuelled by the payment protection insurance (PPI) scandal. The Financial Services Authority received a whopping 3.6m complaints in the first half of the year, as grievances lodged about PPI more than doubled to [...]
Don’t write off the big guns of corporate broking yet September 27, 2012 WHEN Bob Diamond quit Barclays in July, there were many, myself included, who predicted that the bank’s investment business would struggle here on in. Longer-term that may indeed be the case, but the message so far from the world of UK corporate broking is showing a different story. Two big broking mandates, that of Severn [...]
WANdisco eyes new investment after landmark technology IPO September 27, 2012 BRITISH software firm WANdisco said yesterday that it would spend the cash from its summer initial public offering (IPO) on “significantly expanding” its staff as the company invests in the fast growing big data market. Sheffield-based WANdisco has pocketed $26m (£16m) from its float on Aim in June and has seen its shares rise 75 [...]
FTSE edges up as banks and mining shares find favour with investors September 27, 2012 GAINS by bank and mining stocks helped lift Britain’s benchmark share index yesterday, although investors said worries over the Eurozone could limit further moves higher and favour more defensive sectors such as food or health stocks. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index, which fell 1.6 per cent on Wednesday to a three-week low, recovered slightly to [...]