FTSE gains as manufacturing bounces back February 1, 2012 The FTSE rose this morning as better-than-expected UK and Chinese manufacturing data gave investor sentiment a boost and fuelled gains in mining and banking. Britain’s manufacturing sector unexpectedly returned to growth in January as orders rose for the first time in six months, indicating the UK could avoid recession if the sector continues to recover [...]
Joblessness at record high for Eurozone January 31, 2012 UNEMPLOYMENT in the Eurozone remained at a euro-era high in December, figures from Eurostat showed yesterday, reflecting the weak economic outlook. Joblessness stayed at the 10.4 per cent reached in November, up from 10 per cent in December 2010. The unemployment rate for the 27 EU nations stayed at 9.9 per cent, up from 9.5 [...]
Hester’s focus must be banking, not bonuses January 30, 2012 AS THE debate over Stephen Hester’s RBS bonus continues, it is easy to forget the increasingly powerless chief executive has a business to run. One of the most crucial items on the agenda is the restructuring of the investment bank, which chancellor George Osborne effectively called for in December when he said there would be [...]
Banks and miners hit by Greek jitters January 30, 2012 WEAKNESS in banks and commodity stocks dragged Britain’s leading share index lower yesterday as the protracted search for a Greek bond deal and concerns about economic growth kept investors nervous. The FTSE 100 index closed down 62.36 points, or 1.1 per cent, at 5,671.09, extending Friday’s falls and retreating further from Thursday’s six-month closing high. [...]
Banks pull FTSE back as Greece crisis festers January 30, 2012 The FTSE 100 tracked losses across Europe in early trading as the negotiations in Athens over Greece’s disastrous finances showed few signs of success. Greece and its private creditors have so far failed to come up with an agreement on debt swap talks, needed to avoid a default. Meanwhile a European summit focused on growth [...]
LSE set to join the auction for £1bn LME January 29, 2012 THE London Stock Exchange (LSE) is set to join the bidding process for the £1bn-rated London Metal Exchange. Xavier Rolet, chief executive of the LSE, is said to be ready to battle America’s IntercontinentalExchange, one of the parties to first express an interest in buying the LME last year. Rolet wants to diversify the LSE [...]
FTSE slips as investors eye US growth data January 27, 2012 THE FTSE 100 slipped in early trading as investors looked to Greece for signs of progress on a deal to save it from default and to the US where key GDP figures are due for release. Greece and its private creditors made progress in talks on restructuring its debt yesterday with some indication given that [...]
Morale among consumers lifts in Germany January 26, 2012 CONSUMER sentiment in Germany is set to improve for the fifth consecutive month in February, according to survey data released yesterday by GfK. And French consumers became slightly less pessimistic in December, official statistics agency Insee said. However, Italian confidence remains at its lowest level in 16 years. The GfK economic expectations index for Germany [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS January 26, 2012 AXA Deborah Shire has been appointed as global head of business development at Axa Real Estate Investment Managers. Shire will join the AXA Real Estate management board and will report directly to CEO Pierre Vaquier. Shire is promoted from deputy head of structured finance at AXA Investment Managers, which she joined in 1998 as a [...]
Miners fuel FTSE gains as Fed eyes growth January 26, 2012 The FTSE was boosted by the US Federal Reserve’s promise to keep interest rates – and therefore bond yields – ultra-low for the next couple of years while positive results from miners also contributed to gains. Fed chief Ben Bernanke said that it may consider further monetary easing and would keep rates near zero until [...]