London retail sales ahead of rest of UK May 17, 2009 RETAIL sales in central London were up 5.4 per cent in April, compared with the previous year – beating the 4.6 per cent increase in the UK as a whole – according to data released by the British Retail Consortium today. “April was a good month for retail, with Easter falling in the month and [...]
Trio join the cash call craze May 17, 2009 A TRIO of property companies are setting their sights on fundraising this week to exploit opportunities created in the downturn. Great Portland Estates, Big Yellow Group and Shaftesbury have all been working with advisers on how to tap investors for extra cash. West End property specialist Great Portland Estates, is expected to announce a fundraising [...]
Dresdner Kleinwort set for job cuts after Commerzbank seals the deal September 2, 2008 Dresdner Kleinwort employees were bracing themselves for a round of sweeping job cuts yesterday, after German bank Commerzbank completed a deal to buy Dresdner Bank from insurers Allianz at the weekend. Dresdner Kleinwort, led by CEO Stefan Jentzsch and his team employs about 5,500 staff in the UK, with 2,000 of those based in the [...]
Allianz sells Dresdner in £8bn deal September 1, 2008 German insurance giant Allianz last night agreed to sell its beleaguered banking arm Dresdner to rival Commerzbank in a deal worth €9.8bn (£7.9bn) – a tie up that will lead to at least 1,000 job losses in the City. In what will be the biggest German banking merger in nearly a decade, Commerzbank will buy [...]
Liberty surges on speculation over fierce bidding war August 27, 2008 Liberty International saw its shares receive a welcome fillip yesterday as US mall owner Simon Property Group upped its stake in the UK shopping centre specialist to 4.22 per cent, prompting speculation of a bidding war. Australian property group Westfield, the world’s largest shopping mall owner by market cap, also confirmed yesterday that it had [...]
Plunge into a dark pool in the new era of trading platforms August 26, 2008 Project Turquoise is here, and promises to shake up the world of trading. But what does it mean for you?, asks Katie Hope Within two weeks, Project Turquoise will launch in full. The hotly awaited new trading platform set up by a consortium of nine investment banks, started quietly almost two weeks ago trading just [...]
Could now be the moment to enter the dragon? August 8, 2008 As the Olympics begin, China has never been more intriguing, says Samantha Downes It was once a region where only the least risk-averse would fear to tread, but China has emerged as a magnet for investors’ cash. In the last decade the communist-run country has emerged as the world’s second largest economy. Its willingness to [...]
Volatile markets give London Capital Group a boost as interim profits soar August 8, 2008 Volatile market conditions helped profits more than double at spread betting firm London Capital Group over the past six months, its interim results revealed yesterday. Profits before tax rose 52 per cent to £5.43m in the six months to the end of June as sharp falls in share prices tempted more people to try spread [...]
Quintain cuts Wembley jobs August 6, 2008 Developer Quintain unveiled plans to slash costs yesterday, saying it was cutting jobs at its Wembley project and will pay no dividend for up to two years. The property company, which is redeveloping the 85 acres surrounding the north London Wembley stadium into a large retail, leisure and residential scheme, said it was axing over [...]
Avoid the equities wipe out by riding the fast-moving forex wave July 28, 2008 By spread betting currencies you can avoid the boom and bust bedevilling other markets, says Katie Hope Global currency trading has burst into popularity in recent times as investors try to profit from exchange rate fluctuations. The rapid moves of currency exchange rates are what attracts investors to the market. It’s fast-moving and exciting area. [...]