After the Nvidelity comes the Huangover. Jensen Huang joins long list who confused boardroom and bedroom
Cost to insure BofA debt at record high August 23, 2011 SHARES in Bank of America tumbled more than six per cent during trading yesterday, as the price of insuring its debt rocketed to an all-time high. The spread on the bank’s five-year credit default swaps (CDS) climbed to 435 basis points in early trades, meaning it would cost £435,000 a year over five years to [...]
Earnings rise at insurer CPP despite FSA probe August 23, 2011 IDENTITY protection provider CPP Group said its first-half profits had jumped by a third yesterday but warned that a probe into its selling practices had hurt its business. York-based CPP, which also insures credit cards, said it made £23.1m pre-tax profit on revenues of £172.1m in the first half, but said its performance had been [...]
£50m bill for ITV as staff live longer August 22, 2011 ITV has moved to offload the risk associated with its huge pension fund deficit in a £1.7bn deal with Credit Suisse. The complex transaction will add £50m to ITV’s pension-deficit, last valued at £312m. It has been designed so ITV can protect itself against current and former workers living longer than expected. The broadcaster has [...]
Crisis fails to dampen deal prices August 22, 2011 PENSION transfer prices have held up despite the market volatility linked to the sovereign debt crisis, experts said yesterday. America’s credit rating downgrade and the Eurozone sovereign debt crisis have had little impact on corporate bond yields, which drive the price costs of pension insurance buyouts and buy-ins – known as bulk annuities. Pensions consultant [...]
Size matters when it comes to bailout funds August 21, 2011 EUROPEAN leaders still have their work cut out for them. Even though we now know they’re not (officially) moving towards introducing a Eurobond, this is still the direction many in the market argue makes the most sense. Even if it would once again mean the richer European countries underwriting the debts of the poorer ones. [...]
Upbeat US outlook lifts FTSE but Eurozone worries linger August 16, 2011 BRITAIN’S top shares ended a shade higher yesterday, notably banks, after a better than forecast report on industrial output in the United States and as Fitch confirmed that nation’s top credit rating with a stable outlook. The UK benchmark index ended up 7.05 points, or 0.1 per cent, at 5,357.63, having spent much of the [...]
FTSE turns downwards on unease over France’s banks August 10, 2011 SHARPLY weaker banks dragged Britain’s top shares lower yesterday as fears about Europe’s debt came into sharp focus on rumours France may be in danger of losing its triple-A credit rating, and on concerns over the outlook for French banks. The UK benchmark index ended down 157.76 points, or 3.1 per cent, at 5,007.16, its [...]
BofA hit by AIG’s $10bn legal action August 8, 2011 BANK of America shares fell to their lowest level since April 2009 over fears of the slowing US economy and challenges to a multi-billion dollar mortgage settlement. Although most bank shares were knocked by the market turmoil, Bank of America’s shares were worst hit after insurer American International Group (AIG) said it would sue the [...]
S&P lowers more ratings August 8, 2011 A SWATHE of US institutions were stripped of their gold-plated credit ratings by Standard & Poor’s as the fall-out from the downgrade of the US rating agency continued yesterday. As Moody’s weighed its decision to hold the US at AAA, S&P cut the two giant US mortgage agencies Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae to AA+ [...]
The end of an era for Cloud Cuckoo land economics August 7, 2011 IT came as a shock but not as a surprise. America’s downgrade is another psychologically important moment in the decline of the West: the US and much of Europe, once uncontested superpowers, are now the world’s weakest economic link. The post-Bretton Woods era is coming to an end. Asia and the emerging nations are on [...]