Few cheers for physical base metal products from analysts October 27, 2010 THIS year’s annual London Metal Exchange (LME) week was abuzz with the news that physical exchange-traded commodities (ETC) for base metals are going to see the light of day. After plenty of speculation in both the press and the markets, ETF Securities confirmed what many had assumed and announced that it was preparing to launch [...]
Banks will look more closely at law firms, post-downturn October 26, 2010 RECENT trading results published by a number of the large law firms might suggest they have weathered the economic turmoil pretty well. However, much of this robust performance has been achieved through cost-cutting. This is likely to worry banks and other potential backers of law firms. Difficult trading conditions have put financial management under the [...]
Coalition’s pension shake-up is a major error October 25, 2010 The proposals for a new state pension are straight from the old Lib Dem handbook. The government wants to raise the state pension and pay it to everybody regardless of National Insurance contribution (NIC)?records. There are problems with the current system, but sustainable reform is possible. The contributory principle should be strengthened and the two [...]
Cable: Banks should be wary of handing out lavish bonuses October 25, 2010 BANKS should think twice before paying out lavish bonuses this year and must start to refocus on longer-term investment to avoid a repeat of the financial crisis, business secretary Vince Cable said yesterday. Chancellor George Osborne last week confirmed he would impose a tax on banks’ balance sheets as part of measures to insure the [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING October 17, 2010 THE SUNDAYS The Sunday Telegraph LORD LAWSON URGES OSBORNE CUTS Lord Lawson of Blaby, the former Chancellor and a man used as a sounding board by George Osborne, has urged his successor to “be bold” when making cuts to expenditure in this week’s Comprehensive Spending Review. Lord Lawson said that in spite of fears of [...]
Ex-MPC member Barker takes private equity role October 17, 2010 FORMER Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee member Kate Barker has snapped up her second high-profile corporate appointment in just a few weeks, having agreed to take up a role as a non-executive director on the board of Electra Private Equity. Electra, which has investments in household names such as insurer Esure and feminine hygiene [...]
DO-GOODING HEDGE FUND AUTHORS STRIP MEAT OFF MERVYN’S BONES October 14, 2010 FOLLOWING on from The Capitalist’s coverage of the launch of The Gathering Storm – a compilation of essays by hedgies, with all proceeds going to charities chosen by the writers – the book’s august authors gathered yesterday for cucumber sandwiches and wine at the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation. As the discussion galloped [...]
Curbs on loan insurance hit bank sector October 14, 2010 UK lenders are to be banned from selling customers payment protection insurance (PPI) alongside credit products such as personal loans. The Competition Commission yesterday confirmed it will introduce a point-of-sale PPI prohibition as part of a package of reforms designed to make the PPI market more competitive. The decision confirms a provisional ban issued by [...]
Wall Street dips on mortgage worries October 14, 2010 BANKS led US stocks lower yesterday as investors fretted a widening foreclosure crisis could undermine the market’s strength over the last five weeks. The S&P 500 has rallied 11.9 per cent since 1 September and volume has picked up from anaemic levels. But the rally could weaken as an index of bank stocks fell nearly [...]
Free banking will soon be a thing of the past October 7, 2010 IN AN environment of persistently low interest rates, it has become increasingly hard to find a free current account that pays any credit interest at all, according to personal finance information website Moneyfacts.co.uk. Its research, which was published earlier this week, showed that 55 per cent of current accounts on the market pay no credit [...]