FTSE tumbles to lowest close for a week as bank shares fall January 17, 2011 BRITAIN’S top share index fell yesterday, with declines from miners and banks offsetting a lift from merger and acquisition moves, as finance ministers were gathering to discuss changes to the Eurozone’s rescue fund. Smiths grabbed top spot on the blue-chip leaderboard, up 7.7 per cent, after the engineering firm rebuffed a £2.45bn bid for its [...]
FTSE closes under a cloud January 17, 2011 THE FTSE 100 closed down 0.3 per cent or 16.37 points at 5,985.70 today, under a cloud as EU finance ministers gathered to discuss changes to the eurozone’s bailout fund, and weighed down by miners and banks. Trading was also lacklustre as US markets were closed for the Martin Luther King Jr day holiday. Merger [...]
Apple’s Steve Jobs takes medical leave January 17, 2011 APPLE chief executive Steve Jobs is taking medical leave, two years after taking a six-month break when he underwent a liver transplant. Jobs, a survivor of pancreatic cancer, said chief operating officer Tom Cook would take responsibility for day-to-day operations but he would continue to be chief executive and be involved in major strategic decisions. [...]
UK stocks set to profit from strong US market January 16, 2011 AFTER a wobble on Friday brought on by concerns about China’s economy, UK stocks are set to bounce back this morning thanks to a strong close by US markets before the weekend. FTSE LIKELY TO OPEN STRONGER GFT is quoting the FTSE 100 index to open up 30 points from Friday’s close, at a level of 6,002. Elsewhere [...]
WALL STREET WEEK AHEAD January 16, 2011 US bank stocks are flying high, and this week’s earnings could give investors more reason to be optimistic about the sector. Strong results from JPMorgan Chase & Co on Friday bolstered expectations for top US banks, many of which are due to report in the coming week, including Citigroup and Goldman Sachs. Financials have been [...]
Snow losers for traders looking for volatility January 16, 2011 THE Christmas trading results branded companies as either winners or “snow losers” last week. Tesco shocked the market by offering figures that analysts felt paled in comparison to Sainsbury’s. Thanks to 12,000 tonnes of grit, the supermarket deserved to take the title of winner of the festive race. Toy, clothing and leisure retailers also offered [...]
THE WEEK AHEAD January 16, 2011 COMPANY NEWS ● Several large American technology companies will report their results after UK trading hours on Tuesday, including Apple, IBM and Western Digital. ● As will remaining British retailers, including the fashion group Burberry and Carphone Warehouse. ● The budget pub chain JD Wetherspoon will release a trading update on Wednesday, as will bookmaker William [...]
FTSE dips as miners take hit January 14, 2011 The FTSE 100 opened lower today as weaknesses on Wall Street overnight took their toll on European markets. Mining stocks were in the firing line, with falling commodity prices and talk of an interest rate hike in China, dragging share prices down. Xstrata fell by more than one per cent in early trading. Banking stocks [...]
Firms to buy 10m tablet PCs this year January 12, 2011 AROUND a quarter of tablet computers, such as Apple’s smash-hit iPad, will be bought by businesses this year, according to Deloitte. The “big four” accountancy giant says firms will snap up tablet devices for their employees instead of buying more costly PCs. “We predict that companies in the retail, healthcare and manufacturing sectors will buy more than [...]
City views: Would you use a tablet PC at work? January 12, 2011 DAVID HARPER | LEISURE PROPERTY SERVICES “I don’t own an iPad – I don’t know what they offer me that improves on a laptop at the moment. They are still seen as something of a toy, and quite an expensive one at that. JAMES INGRAM | FIDESSA GROUP “I don’t have a tablet, although the [...]