Amlin slumps to first half loss August 22, 2011 Lloyd’s of London insurer Amlin crashed to a £192.3m pre-tax loss in the first half of 2011 after absorbing a surge in claims from the Japanese earthquake and other natural disasters. Amlin had earlier this month already flagged up a loss of about £180m, some £65m more than analysts were expecting, because of a bigger-than-expected [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING August 22, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES LLOYDS LOOKS TO EASE DISPOSAL Lloyds Banking Group is in early talks with the City regulator about easing the capital burden for prospective buyers of some of its branches in an effort to remove one of the biggest obstacles to the sale. It hopes to pave the way for a bidder to qualify [...]
FTSE in tailspin as recession fears grip markets August 19, 2011 The FTSE 100 continued its downward spiral this morning as banking stocks plunged amid escalating fears that the global economic recovery was being derailed. Investors piled into gold to take it to yet another record price as equities took a hammering across the globe. A raft of grim economic data plus the ongoing eurozone debt [...]
Global growth fears drain confidence from markets August 18, 2011 Renewed fears over spluttering global economic growth dragged back world markets with commodity and financial stocks suffering in the increasingly bleak climate. Morgan Stanley cut its forecast for global growth, citing “recent policy errors” in the US and Europe, plus prospects of further fiscal tightening in 2012. MSCI’s world equity index fell 0.8 per cent [...]
CITY VIEWS: DOES BRITAIN NEED AN AMERICAN SUPERCOP TO SOLVE ITS PROBLEM WITH GANGS? August 15, 2011 GRAHAM CONSTABLE | LLOYD’S OF LONDON “I don’t think it is necessary. It would be by-passing social issues that a supercop couldn’t change. Ultimately the US gang culture is different to ours and we should rely on our own expertise.” JOHNNY GODSON | TEK SYSTEMS “It depends on his experience in dealing with similar situations. [...]
Storm clouds pass as market recovers August 15, 2011 The FTSE 100 edged up this morning as the market recovery continued to gain traction. Following gains in Asia overnight London’s blue chip index opened down but quickly regained its footing. The gains came ahead of a crucial summit between France and Germany tomorrow to hammer out a solution to the Eurozone debt crisis which [...]
Short selling ban fails to halt volatility in markets August 12, 2011 European stocks failed to rally significantly this morning after a ban on short selling in four pivotal Eurozone nations failed to stem the tide of losses seen over the week. The assault on short sellers, triggered by a collapse in confidence in banks including Societe Generale, had been hastily introduced in an attempt to stop [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING August 11, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES LI & FUNG UPBEAT OVER THE GLOBAL ECONOMY Li & Fung, the Hong Kong-headquartered sourcing company for retailers such as Walmart and Debenhams, sounded an upbeat note on Thursday, asserting that business conditions were “not at all” like those in 2008”, despite the current uncertainty over prospects for the global economy. Bruce Rockowitz, [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS August 10, 2011 Whitbread The leisure group has appointed Susan Hooper and Susan Taylor Martin (pictured) as non-executive directors. Hooper, who will join the Whitbread board on 1 September, is chief executive of Acromas Travel, where she manages the Saga, AA and Titan Hi Tours businesses. Taylor Martin, whose appointment is effective from 1 January 2012, is president, [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS August 9, 2011 Baker & McKenzie The law firm has appointed Marc Fèvre as a partner in its energy, mining and infrastructure (EMI) group. Fèvre joins from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, and is an expert in energy and infrastructure project development and finance. He also brings recent experience of the Middle East, having worked in Abu Dhabi since early [...]