Commodity falls and fears for stress tests see FTSE decline July 14, 2011 FALLS among commodity issues sapped the strength of Britain’s top share index yesterday, as worries over global growth clouded the demand outlook for metals and oils. At the close, the FTSE 100 index was down 59.48 points, or one per cent at 5,846.95, reversing all and more of the previous session’s 0.6 per cent rally. [...]
Eurozone uncertainty drags down markets July 12, 2011 The FTSE 100 dived on opening today after a meeting tabled to thrash out issues related to the Eurozone debt crisis failed to bear fruit. London’s drop mirrored steep falls on Wall Street and in Asia as investors remained unconvinced by the 16-country bloc’s strategy for steering through the crisis. Eurozone leaders gathered with the [...]
The big picture: London property July 10, 2011 Office Space IT’S a game of two halves for central London’s commercial property market: an early trip to the showers for the office sector, while the retail sector is playing into extra time. Across London’s core office pitches, from the financial zones of Canary Wharf and the City, to the media and head office blocks [...]
Banks in retreat after Portugal downgrade July 6, 2011 The FTSE 100 lost ground on opening today after Moody’s cut Portugal’s credit rating to “junk” sending banking shares down. As the Eurozone crisis deepened investors abandoned risky equities as banks’ exposure to the crisis in the eurozone came under the spotlight. The euro fell sharply after the Moody’s four-notch downgrade to Ba2, with the [...]
FTSE digs in after gains July 5, 2011 The FTSE started solidly today after breaking the 6,000 barrier yesterday but bleak service sector data cast a shadow across European markets. Growth in the eurozone’s service sector slowed for a third straight month in June — sending negative signals to investors. The UK Markit/CIPS services PMI came in at 53.9 for June, down from [...]
NO LUNCH FOR BLAIRS AT BANKING AIDE’S BASH July 4, 2011 SO MANY social engagements, so little time for Tony and Cherie Blair, who only had time for a quick drink at the fiftieth birthday for Russell Chambers – the man dubbed “Blair’s favourite banker” – before rushing off without sitting down to eat. Chambers, the Credit Suisse senior adviser who famously lent Blair a pair [...]
Mayor backs £600m bond for Crossrail July 3, 2011 THE Mayor of London Boris Johnson has launched a £600m bond to finance the construction of Crossrail. Issuing the bond will help the Greater London Authority (GLA) fund its £4.1bn investment in the £14.8bn project to build the new rail link, which will connect east and west parts of the capital. London will be the [...]
Lloyd’s sees far higher cost of Solvency II June 30, 2011 THE COST of bringing in new Solvency II insurance regulation will cost Lloyd’s of London far more than previously estimated, its finance head warned yesterday. The insurance market initially said it would spend about £250m to prepare for Solvency II, which will change the amount of regulatory capital it holds against different risks. But in [...]
Banks take FTSE 100 to its fifth straight day of gains… June 30, 2011 BRITAIN’S top shares rose sharply yesterday after the Greek parliament passed a second austerity bill to secure emergency funds, with riskier assets such as oil stocks, banks and miners leading the charge higher. The FTSE 100 index closed up 89.76 points, or 1.5 per cent, at 5,945.71, its fifth consecutive day of gains, managing to [...]
Banks reveal hundreds of UK and US job cuts June 29, 2011 THE AXE is set to fall on hundreds of investment banking jobs in London and further afield, with Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs and Barclays all proposing cuts to their headcounts in recent days. Credit Suisse is planning to cut more than 600 jobs in its investment banks, including upwards of 100 in its London operations, [...]