The weak pound can offer opportunities September 1, 2008 Looming interest-rate decisions could give options to spread betters, writes Katie Hope If you were planning a quick shopping trip to New York to take advantage of the weakening dollar, you may have missed your moment. The pound’s strength against the dollar is finally on the turn. In the past month sterling has seen its [...]
Working women have never had it so bad: discuss August 28, 2008 Mothers have a tough time juggling everything, but should we feel sorry for them? For decades, feminists have talked about working women’s “second shift”, the extra work they do in the home after they have finished their day’s work in the office. It seems that things are much the same now as they were in [...]
UPS plans to deliver £8bn bid for TNT August 11, 2008 American delivery service United Parcel Service (UPS) is understood to be preparing a €10bn (£7.8bn) bid for Dutch rival TNT, in a long-heralded move that would create a new global delivery giant. Early-stage talks about a deal are thought to have been ongoing in the last few days, after years of speculation about a takeover [...]
Federal Reserve holds interest rates amid “softening” employment market August 6, 2008 The Federal Reserve, in a widely expected move, held US interest rates at two per cent last night, with Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Richard Fisher the only dissenter among the 11 person panel. The statement from the central bank referred to the “softening” labour market and the “considerable stress” upon the financial market as [...]
Fed comes to rescue July 31, 2008 The Federal Reserve extended its emergency lending program yesterday in an effort to settle turbulent money markets, as the European Central Bank and Swiss National Bank followed suit. The Fed said that the length of the program, under which investment institutions can turn to the central bank for cash, would be extended until January 30. [...]
Avoid the equities wipe out by riding the fast-moving forex wave July 28, 2008 By spread betting currencies you can avoid the boom and bust bedevilling other markets, says Katie Hope Global currency trading has burst into popularity in recent times as investors try to profit from exchange rate fluctuations. The rapid moves of currency exchange rates are what attracts investors to the market. It’s fast-moving and exciting area. [...]
City: FTSE to bounce back July 21, 2008 London’s benchmark equity market could stage a dramatic recovery by the end of this year, according to leading strategists who predict the FTSE 100 will end the year above 6,000. Analysts at brokerages Charles Stanley and Brewin Dolphin expect the FTSE 100 to end the year at 6,800 and 6,200 respectively. The more optimistic forecasts [...]
Wall Street giants hit by SEC probe into short-selling July 17, 2008 American regulators have subpoenaed top investment banks, including Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank and Merrill Lynch as part of an investigation into the suspected manipulation of Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers shares. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has also approached more than 50 hedge funds to obtain trading and communications data. The inquiry aims [...]
US authorities move to rescue Freddie and Fannie July 14, 2008 Support from US Treasury comes minutes before far east markets open for trading US Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson moved to calm nerves about stricken American lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac last night, saying the government would be willing to take an equity stake in the two banks. His eagerly awaited statement came just minutes [...]
Fed bail-out move halts market slide July 9, 2008 Ben Bernanke says Fed may continue emergency lending scheme into next year Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke’s announcement last night that he is considering extending its emergency cash lending system for investment banks into next year rescued plunging markets in London and the US. But economists warned that the move signalled that the fall out [...]