Horta-Osorio speeds-up Lloyds sale plans on day one March 1, 2011 THE NEW chief executive of Lloyds is stepping up plans to sell more than 600 branches operated by the state-backed lender. António Horta-Osório, the former head of Spanish bank Santander’s UK operations, took his place at the helm yesterday. His tenure began with a bang, as the bank revealed it would push ahead with plans [...]
JLT sees soft rates ending March 1, 2011 INSURANCE broker Jardine Lloyd Thompson (JLT) pushed into emerging Asian and Latin American markets to deliver double-digit profit growth in 2010, it said yesterday. JLT beat market expectations with underlying pre-tax profit growth of 24 per cent, to £130.1m from £104.8m in 2009. Underlying earnings per share rose 20 per cent to 40.5p from 33.8p [...]
Catastrophes send Hiscox’s profit reeling February 28, 2011 LLOYD’S insurer Hiscox yesterday attributed a 34 per cent fall in its 2010 pre-tax profit to devastating earthquakes in Chile and New Zealand. Full-year profit slid to £211.4m from £320.6m in 2009 as disaster claims rose to £165m in the year. “Mother Nature has well and truly tested us this year,” chairman Robert Hiscox said. [...]
Banks pull FTSE 100 down while resources make gains February 28, 2011 THE FTSE 100 share index fell slightly yesterday as disappointing results from HSBC and Associated British Foods outweighed strength from miners on optimism about the global economy. The blue-chip index ended 7.19 points, or 0.1 per cent lower, at 5,994.01, after it closed 1.4 per cent higher on Friday at 6,001.20, bouncing back after five [...]
Virus hits LSE website after trading glitch February 27, 2011 THE LONDON Stock Exchange (LSE) last night said it hoped for a week of glitch free trading following last week’s high profile closure. Although it could not promise there would be no problems, it pointed to the successful reinstatement of its trading system on Friday afternoon. A spokesperson said: “The problem was fixed and the [...]
Why premiums will keep falling despite the New Zealand quake February 27, 2011 THE earthquake that devastated Christchurch in New Zealand last week also shattered insurance companies’ hopes of a quieter year for disasters than 2010. The quake, which has claimed more than 100 lives and devastated historic and commercial city centre buildings, may cost the industry $12bn – more than double the $5.5-6bn insured cost of the [...]
COMPANIES KEEN TO HIT THE ROAD FOR EVENTS February 27, 2011 WITH the Bribery Act and its new rules on corporate hospitality fast approaching, firms could be forgiven for dialling back the perks and avoiding client entertainment for the time being. But according to research by Keith Prowse, the big events on the UK calendar are still pulling in the punters – with next month’s 100th [...]
Saudi oil pledge fuels FTSE rally February 25, 2011 The FTSE has rallied strongly this afternoon, shaking off the technical glitch that upset morning trading to finish just above the 6,000 level. The FTSE 100 closed up 1.37 per cent at 6,001.2 after oil price fears subsided following a Saudi announcement that it had increased output to make up for any shortages as a [...]
Qatar keen to buy RBS and Lloyds stakes February 23, 2011 QATAR plans to buy stakes in RBS and Lloyds Banking Group, the nation’s Prime Minister told David Cameron yesterday. Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani said when asked about the state-owned banks: “We are very open to any investment in the UK and we have discussed some.” The Qatar Investment Authority already [...]
CITY VIEWS: SHOULD LARGE COMPANIES BE LED BY ONE PERSON OR A BOARD OF DIRECTORS? February 23, 2011 KEN SDEAN | LLOYDS “A face will represent a brand if the market perceives strong leadership, but there are many contributors behind every successful business.” PETER WILLIAMS | XCHANGING “The success of a company should not rely on a single person entirely. A directorial board brings more in terms of ideas and options.” TYRAN FALLAN [...]