Advisers line up for the biggest deal in town February 14, 2011 WHEN you’re trying to build up a franchise in mergers and acquisitions, there’s nothing better than being signed up to work on one of the biggest deals in town. So naturally Barclays Capital and RBC Capital Markets were as pleased as punch to be advising the London Stock Exchange on its £4.3bn merger with Canada’s [...]
FTSE falls due to poor results as banks and miners weigh February 10, 2011 Disappointing corporate results crimped confidence on the outlook for risk-sensitive banks and miners, pushing Britain’s top share index lower by yesterday’s close. Diageo shed 4.6 per cent as half-year results from the world’s biggest spirits group missed forecasts, prompting broker Espirito Santo to downgrade its rating to “hold”. International Consolidated Airline Group was also sharply [...]
The top ten real causes of the crisis February 9, 2011 IN the end, Merlin turned out a damp squib. This is goodish news, because the deal is based on a faulty interpretation of the crisis. Here are the ten most important causes of our problems. 1) Loose, ultra-interventionist monetary policy from central banks that kept stepping in whenever growth slowed or the stock market fell. [...]
S&P ups outlook on Aviva February 9, 2011 INSURANCE group Aviva’s credit rating outlook was upgraded yesterday by Standard & Poor’s after it confirmed plans to cut its debt and reduce pension deficits, and on the strengthening of its balance sheet. Aviva’s outlook was raised from negative to stable by the rating agency, which also affirmed the group’s core operating entities at AA-. [...]
Businesses need help to export February 8, 2011 More needs to be done to get British companies exporting, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said today. In a survey of 8,000 companies, nearly 70 per cent were not current or likely exporters, it said. And among companies that do export, 15 per cent still face difficulties accessing trade finance and insurance. Most businesses [...]
PERSONAL FINANCE NEWS February 2, 2011 SPACE INVADERS COST £66M Space invaders, houseguests who stay with friends and family for weeks at a time without paying rent, are causing havoc. More than 4.9m homeowners have been left counting the cost of houseguests who overstayed their welcome last year. Direct Line research shows that the space invaders caused £66m in damages to [...]
April tax hikes will harm rich the most: study January 30, 2011 WEALTHY people will be hardest hit by fresh tax hikes being introduced in April, the Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS) said today. The richest tenth of the country will lose on average three per cent of their net income because of the changes, while most others will lose just one per cent, the IFS revealed. [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS January 30, 2011 KPMG Dr Nicola Mazzarotto (pictured) has been appointed as head of competition economics for financial advisory and accountants KPMG. The appointment means that he is now a director in the firm’s economics practice. He joins the firm from the competition commission, where he performed economic analysis for eight years on several high-profile mergers, including a [...]
Vodafone drags on the FTSE despite strong insurer gains January 27, 2011 BRITAIN’S FTSE 100 share index closed slightly lower yesterday, after a dip in index heavyweight Vodafone, dented by weak results from AT&T, offset a surge in insurers following positive broker comment. The FTSE 100 closed down 4.13 points, or 0.1 per cent, at 5,965.08, having added 0.9 per cent the previous session. Vodafone, the company [...]
FTSE left lower as investor confidence knocked January 27, 2011 The FTSE lost traction this afternoon after a credit rating cut on Japan knocked investor confidence from the market open, and poor results from fashion chain H&M saw retailers sold. The FTSE 100 closed down 0.07 per cent or 4.13 per cent at 5,965.08 with miners giving up earlier gains to allow steady asset management [...]