AT A GLANCE | HOW TO BEAT THE STRIKE – DISRUPTION STARTS THIS EVENING November 1, 2010 TUBE Disruption is likely to most journeys, but London Underground will run as many trains and keep as many stations open as possible. Check www.tfl.gov.uk for the latest situation on your line and at your station before you travel. Volunteers will be on hand at key stations to give alternative travel options and otherwise assist [...]
ECONOMIST VIEWS: WILL THE MPC MOVE TO INCREASE QE THIS WEEK? October 31, 2010 SIMON HAYES | BARCLAYS CAPITAL “In the context of a policy stance that is already exceptionally loose… a further loosening would seem odd. I expect no change in policy… and continue to believe a three-way split is likely to persist for several months to come.” PETER DIXON | COMMERZBANK “The chances of a near-term expansion [...]
The housebuilder who is ready to take the long road back to recovery October 31, 2010 DESPITE the generally depressed state of the housebuilding and residential property market, Taylor Wimpey’s chief executive Peter Redfern says he is pretty pleased with business. But sitting in the boardroom of his London office, his mood appears more reflective than upbeat. “Prices are very stable at the moment,” says Redfern. “Stable is good for us. [...]
Tyrie warns banks over hasty exits October 28, 2010 THE chairman of the influential Treasury Select Committee yesterday warned UK banks against making a sudden move offshore, after City A.M. revealed Barclays was weighing up the cost of quitting the UK. “My thought should be to say that the global commercial environment for financial services and banking is likely to remain unclear for some [...]
Three cheers for the stars of the Square Mile October 28, 2010 LAST night was truly an exciting and exceptional occasion: City A.M.’s inaugural awards celebrating the best and brightest of London’s business, financial and investment communities. Our inaugural awards ceremony saw more than 450 guests in their finery roll up at the Grange Hotel at St Pauls. Our winners, unique in that each was initially chosen [...]
CITY WELCOMES A DOSE OF FESTIVITY AND OPTIMISM October 28, 2010 “AN EVENING of festivity and optimism” was the way in which our editor Allister Heath introduced City A.M.’s inaugural awards ceremony last night, and the evening did not fail to live up to expectations. After years of gloom-mongering and banker-bashing, what better way to acknowledge the role of the City in bringing the economy back [...]
Barclays weighs up costs of quitting UK October 27, 2010 SENIOR executives at Barclays Bank are weighing up the costs of moving the group’s headquarters from London to overseas, most probably New York. The bank’s executives, including at board level, have spent a great deal of time poring over the issue over the past few weeks. While no final decision has been taken, they have [...]
Time running out to halt City exodus October 27, 2010 IMAGINE the scene. It’s late 2011; Bob Diamond, Barclays’ boss, is posing with New York’s Mayor Michael Bloomberg in front of the firm’s New York headquarters. Bloomberg is boasting to the local media about how much he expects his city to make in extra tax receipts from Barclays’ relocation, which has just been completed. Meanwhile, [...]
NAB sees UK profits double October 27, 2010 THE owner of Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks announced a rise in full year pre-tax profits of over 50 per cent yesterday after it advanced £4.7bn in mortgages and wrote down fewer bad debts. National Australia Bank (NAB) said lending had been subdued in the year to 30 September but that it was “firmly on track” [...]
PIMCO’S GROSS ISSUES WARNING OVER A BRAZEN PONZI SCHEME: QE October 27, 2010 PIMCO’S resident bond expert Bill Gross yesterday, in his usual verbose fashion, issued a stark warning over the upcoming second round of quantitative easing (QE) in the US – dubbing it no less than a “Ponzi scheme” on the part of the Federal Reserve. “Check [sic] writing in the trillions is not a bondholder’s friend; [...]