WHAT’S THE OUTLOOK FOR BG GROUP AFTER THESE RESULTS? October 28, 2009 RONNIE CHOPRA FALCON SECURITIES “All the large integrated oil companies are struggling with production growth, and new discoveries are struggling to replace the existing assets. BG has a first-class portfolio of assets across the globe which would make an attractive fit for a predator. BG has outstanding growth prospects.” HENK POTTS BARCLAYS WEALTH “Despite the [...]
Citi rainmaker King joins Barclays Capital October 27, 2009 BARCLAYS Capital, the fast-growing division of Barclays that includes the US operations of fallen Lehman Brothers, has hired former Citigroup deal maker Tom King. King, who quit Citigroup five weeks ago saying he wanted to “pursue other interests”, was named co-head of corporate finance reporting to head of global investment banking Hugh “Skip” McGee. The [...]
Energy stocks keep the FTSE warm despite banking falls October 27, 2009 THE FTSE 100 gained 0.2 per cent yesterday, keeping level after a rally from heavyweight energy issues offset weakness in banks and mining stocks. The index closed 9.23 points higher at 5,200.97, after ending 1 per cent lower on Monday. The blue-chip index has gained about 51 per cent since hitting a six-year low in [...]
Branson ups ante with launch of Virgin Bank October 26, 2009 SERIAL entrepreneur Sir?Richard Branson is back with another audacious venture. This time, he is applying to City watchdog the FSA for permission to turn his Virgin Money business into a fully fledged bank – but the move has divided the City. Virgin has been trying to boost its financial services presence for some time now. [...]
Weak banks and miners pull FTSEdown by one per cent October 26, 2009 THE FTSE 100 share index ended 1 per cent lower yesterday, with mining and energy stocks suffering as the US dollar rose and commodity prices fell, while a sharp decline in ING put pressure on financials. The index ended down 50.83 points at 5,191.74, having risen as high as 5,281.12 earlier in the session. It [...]
Osborne gets it wrong on cash bonuses October 26, 2009 AS bizarre policies go, the Tories’ latest thinking on bank bonuses takes some beating. For this year only, Britain’s commercial banks will not be allowed to pay more than a trivial bonus in cash – but they will be able to pay as many millions as they want in shares. The rule will only apply [...]
Shareholders back cash call at Ladbrokes October 26, 2009 BOOKMAKER Ladbrokes yesterday announced its shareholders have agreed to buy more than 95 per cent of the shares offered in its underwritten £275m cash call. Ladbrokes, which runs 2,700 betting shops, unveiled a surprise rights issue earlier this month to pay down debt after revealing revenue had dived by 15 per cent in its third [...]
Barclays seals deal to buy StanLife Bank October 26, 2009 BARCLAYS yesterday agreed to pay £226m for the banking division of Standard Life, allowing the Edinburgh-based life insurer to refocus on its core business. The relatively modest deal will add £5.5bn in deposits and 287,000 new accounts to Barclays’ massive base of 15m current account customers. The banking unit last year became a thorn in [...]
Supply trouble to keep cocoa futures on an upward trend October 25, 2009 WITH oil and gold constantly hitting the headlines, it’s all too easy for spread betters to take the (relatively) easy route and stick to trading the big commodity markets. But given how strongly some of the so-called soft commodities such as cocoa and sugar have performed over recent months, it is clear that extending your [...]
The tributes pour in as City A.M. gets to 1,000 October 22, 2009 GORDON BROWNPrime Minister“Congratulations to City A.M. on reaching a thousand editions. Your paper has kept both Westminster and the City informed at a time of great turbulence in the world economy.” SIR VICTOR BLANKFormer chairman, Lloyds Banking“City A.M. has developed into a quality newspaper which sparks boardroom debate with its insight and analysis. It is [...]