At a glance: everything you need to know from the Vickers report September 12, 2011 ICB: THE BENEFITS OF RING-FENCING Sir John Vickers, chair of the Independent Commission on Banking (ICB), stuck to his guns in insisting that his ring-fence proposal is the best way to ensure Britain’s banks are more stable and do not require costly bailouts if they fail. His main argument is that a ring-fence will make it easier to [...]
Weak commodities take toll on FTSE but banks rebound September 12, 2011 BRITAIN’S leading share index fell yesterday, on weakness in heavyweight mining and energy issues as commodity prices retreated, while a partial recovery by banks brought blue-chips back from intra-days lows for the month. At the close, the FTSE 100 index was down 85.03 points, or 1.6 per cent, at 5,129.62, having bounced off the session [...]
Economic fears stoke slowdown in August September 11, 2011 ONLY London and three other English regions recorded economic growth in August, according to a survey released this morning, with most areas of England either in stagnation or going backwards. Growth came to a grinding halt across the UK as a whole, collapsing to an 28-month low of 50.6 in Lloyds TSB’s latest PMI reading [...]
British Land taps US investors in record $480m private placement September 8, 2011 BRITISH Land, the second-largest UK real estate investment trust (REIT), has closed a $480m (£300.6m) US private placement bond issue, taking the total funds it has raised since May to $860m, it said yesterday. It is the largest US private placement by a UK REIT, involving 12 investors and a range of maturities between seven [...]
LORD FINK WARMS UP FOR PARTY MARATHON September 7, 2011 HE HAS survived running the world’s largest hedge fund and managing the books for the Conservative Party. But the test that will really prove the making of Lord Stanley Fink is a 24-hour, country-hopping bender from London to Spain. Next Thursday, Fink and his business associate David Johnstone, who co-founded the luxury brands holding company [...]
Chancellor Osborne: I am not for turning September 6, 2011 CHANCELLOR George Osborne came out fighting during questioning in parliament yesterday, insisting that he will continue with plans to cut the UK government’s annual deficit. Osborne also rejected calls from Labour’s Ed Balls for another tax on financial sector bonuses — and was quick to make fun of the back-stabbing suffered by Balls at the [...]
NBNK suspends shares ahead of possible deal September 6, 2011 NEW banking venture NBNK Investments suspended its shares yesterday as it confirmed it was in talks that could lead to its maiden acquisition. However, the bank declined to name its target, despite sources yesterday confirming that it would look to buy the UK operations of National Australia Bank. “There can be no certainty that a [...]
A rally in commodities gives a rare fillip to the FTSE 100 September 6, 2011 A RALLY by hard-pressed commodity issues hauled Britain’s top share index higher yesterday as investors fished choppy waters for bargains after sharp falls in the past two sessions. At the close, the FTSE 100 index was up 54.26 points, or 1.1 per cent, at 5,156.84, having hit a peak of 5,190.2 in the morning and [...]
City insurance market bigger than expected September 5, 2011 LONDON insurers are writing far more business than previously believed, cementing London’s status as a top global insurance hub, new research yesterday showed. City insurers wrote a total of £39bn of gross premium in 2010, a third more than the £30bn estimate for the industry previously used, the International Underwriting Association said after surveying the [...]
Banks slump as service sector data disappoints September 5, 2011 Stocks have retreated this morning after a poor overnight session in Asia and over intensifying concerns that economies worldwide face recession. London’s FTSE 100 has been hit by a barrage of fears over global growth since US employment data on Friday showed job creation slumped to zero in August. Service sector data from China has [...]