HOW MUCH TENSION IS THERE AMONGST BANK OF ENGLAND MPC MEMBERS? July 4, 2010 MICHAEL SAUNDERS | CITIGROUP “Recent MPC comments hint at a vigorous debate, and some members appear to believe that a broader range of factors is behind the pick-up in inflation. If inflation expectations continue to rise then the MPC could feel obliged to hike rates to show they take the inflation target seriously.” PHILIP SHAW [...]
Chloride considers new Emerson bid June 29, 2010 POWER protection firm Chloride said last night a new takeover bid from American rival Emerson was a superior proposal to the deal already made with Swiss firm ABB. Emerson raised its offer by more than a third to 375p per share yesterday, surpassing a prior board agreement with Swiss firm ABB for 325p per share. [...]
Sentance shatters consensus with call for rate rise June 23, 2010 A LONE dissenting voice in the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) this month urged for a hike in rates, the first time since August 2008 that such a call has been made. External MPC member Andrew Sentance, who has recently expressed disquiet about stubbornly high inflation in both MPC meetings and in the [...]
After sterling’s rally, investors are playing a waiting game June 22, 2010 FOREX markets gave a cautious welcome to George Osborne’s emergency Budget measures yesterday, with sterling rallying to highs of $1.4851 and €1.2081. However, the pound still failed to make up Monday’s losses against the dollar, reflecting a widespread wait-and-see approach as analysts work through the details of the Budget and watch for its impact on [...]
BRIGHT STARS GATHER AT CITY’S ANNUAL OSCARS June 15, 2010 THOMSON Reuters rolled out the (imaginary) red carpet yesterday for the annual Extel awards, commonly known as the “Oscars” of the City. This year’s affair, hosted by perky Today presenter John Humphrys, was decidedly more upbeat than in 2009, when “credit crunch” presenter Axel Threlfall of Thomson Reuters’ multimedia platform Project Insider quipped that he [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS June 13, 2010 Bupa The healthcare provider has appointed Rita Clifton to its board as a non-executive director, effective from July. Clifton is also a director at DSG International and chairman of brand consultancy Interbrand. She began her career in advertising at DMB&B and J Walter Thompson, before joining Saatchi and Saatchi in 1986, where she became vice-chairman [...]
BP’S FORMER RIVAL TESTING THE WATERS VIA THE USUAL CHANNELS June 13, 2010 JOHN Hofmeister, the former president of Shell, has been busy over the past few weeks, sticking his oar in to help former rival BP traverse the oil-slicked waters of the post-spill Gulf. Hofmeister has been a staunch proponent of using giant supertankers to suck up the oil for processing – arguing that the same system [...]
Manufacturing output in surprise drop June 11, 2010 Manufacturing output unexpectedly fell in April, official data has shown – suggesting Britain’s recovering economy got off to a slow start in the second quarter. Figures from the Office for National Statistics also showed producer input costs eased less than expected in May, although factory gate inflation slowed slightly more than expected. The ONS said [...]
Interest rates kept at record 0.5pc low June 10, 2010 THE Bank of England stuck to its policy of ultra-loose interest rates yesterday when it held the cost of borrowing at 0.5 per cent and kept the stock of asset purchases at £200bn. The 0.5 per cent rate has now been in place for 14 months – the longest streak of unchanged rates since the [...]
ABB pounces with surprise Chloride offer June 8, 2010 CHLORIDE, the UK power protection group that is being courted by Emerson, yesterday shocked the markets by announcing it has tied up a £860m deal with Switzerland’s ABB. ABB is offering 325p a share, plus the payment of a 3.3p dividend, and its bid easily beats an earlier rejected offer of 275p a share from [...]