London Report: Ukraine strife and China data hit FTSE shares March 24, 2014 BRITAIN’S top share index fell yesterday on concerns about the situation in Ukraine and a slowdown in Chinese growth, while energy providers were hit by worries they may be forced to break up their businesses. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index ended 0.6 per cent lower at 6,520.39 points, falling for nine of the past 12 [...]
CNBC Comment: Alibaba float splits investor opinion March 24, 2014 FROM advisers to potential investors, many are salivating over the forthcoming Alibaba listing stateside. Investors who dabbled in Facebook and Twitter will now have access to the champion of Chinese internet players, where e-commerce is booming. According to China Internet Network Information Center, China ended 2013 with 618m internet users, 500m of which were mobile [...]
What you need to know before the US open March 24, 2014 US stock futures have crept higher today, on speculation that the continuing weak Chinese data – this time in the form of manufacturing numbers – will prompt the government to introduce further stimulus to help deal with the slowdown. Friday saw the S&P 500 hit an intraday record, though it closed lower. European markets are [...]
What you need to know before the open March 24, 2014 Fears over what’ll be Russia’s next move in Crimea are expected to prompt markets to open lower in Europe. Moreover, weaker Chinese data – the HSBC purchasing managers’ index has fallen to an unexpected eight-month low – is anticipated to affect sentiment. Russian troops have taken control of a Crimean naval base at Feodosia, Ukrainian [...]
Asian markets edge higher in face of weak China data March 24, 2014 Asian markets are seeing gains despite a fall in the HSBC purchasing managers' index (PMI) to an eight month low. The measure fell from 48.5 in February to 48.1 in March. The decline was more than expected with Bloomberg's median at 48.7 and London-based consultancy Capital Economics forecasting 48.5. Weak domestic demand was one of [...]
Three tech firms surge to $260bn on grey market March 24, 2014 THREE upcoming initial public offerings (IPOs) from tech firms King Digital Entertainment, Alibaba and Just Eat are all set to beat analyst expectations with a combined valuation of over $260bn (£158bn), according to IG’s IPO grey market. King, the British games giant and creator of Candy Crush Saga, has already hit a valuation of $8.7bn, [...]
Down to a Fine Art March 23, 2014 Annabel Palmer talks to Patrick van der Vorst, the ex-Sotheby’s art expert who used a £100,000 investment from Dragons Den to build online valuation service Value My Stuff THE INTERNATIONAL art market is having a ball, as investors flock to the perceived safer asset. A Sotheby’s sale last month totalled £163m, with demand coming from [...]
4 reasons now is the right time to get excited about gold March 21, 2014 With last year's 28 per cent price crash – suffering its sharpest fall in 30 years – it wasn’t just gold bugs and mining companies who have had to endure gold’s bumpy road, as its crashing popularity signalled a shift in economic confidence, upping the favour of paperless assets. This year, things have started to [...]
Introducing Yummy: The rise of HSBC’s metrosexual shopper March 21, 2014 It hasn’t been an easy ride recently for luxury brands operating in emerging markets. This week, Mulberry lost its chief executive, following a shock profit warning in January, and brands Hermes, Kering and LVMH have seen their stocks slide over ten per cent since the autumn. The continued worries about the slowdown in the Chinese [...]
Chinese shoppers boost Hermes March 20, 2014 French luxury goods maker Hermes saw good demand over the Chinese New Year, the company said yesterday, underscoring its resilience to a crackdown on illicit gift-giving in the industry’s biggest market that has hit some rivals hard. Posting a nine per cent rise in 2013 operating profit, the maker of Birkin handbags and printed silk [...]