Baltic blues disperse as strength returns September 22, 2009 SINCE the start of the financial crisis, the Baltic states have cast a long shadow over their Scandinavian and Eastern European neighbours. Swedish banks, which lent heavily to the Baltic states in euros, now find themselves running a high risk of loan default. Sweden’s Swedbank, which is the Nordic bank most heavily exposed to the [...]
City of London Police launch appeal to capture organised crime group September 21, 2009 THE City of London Police yesterday appealed for the public to help catch two men believed to part of an organised crime group responsible for ten of thousands of pounds worth of theft. The force responsible for law and order in the Square Mile said that the men were caught on CCTV stealing nearly £5,000 [...]
US sees rise in loan defaults September 21, 2009 A MEASURE of the US economy’s prospects scaled a one-and-a-half-year high in August but a record rise in home loan defaults cast doubts on the durability of the recovery. The Conference Board yesterday said its index of leading economic indicators rose 0.6 per cent to 102.5, the highest level since January 2008. It had advanced [...]
Long-term incentives no panacea for City September 20, 2009 SLOWLY but surely, the US and the European positions on regulating bonuses are becoming more similar. At the risk of courting unpopularity, it is therefore worth injecting a few facts into a discussion which to date has been characterised by hysteria and demagoguery rather than reason. It is true and deplorable that some bankers were [...]
Barclays will dump 7.5bn in risky assets September 16, 2009 BARCLAYS yesterday announced the sale of $12.3bn (£7.5bn) of credit market assets to a newly-established fund called Protium Finance, managed by former Barclays Capital (BarCap) employees, in a bid to reduce its credit market exposure. The deal, a complex piece of financial engineering, was well received by investors but slammed by some analysts and media [...]
Inflation slows by less than expected September 15, 2009 THE Consumer Prices Index (CPI) dropped to an annual rate of 1.6 per cent in August, compared to 1.8 per cent in July, according to official statistics released yesterday. But the Retail Prices Index, which includes mortgage interest payments and housing costs edged up from -1.4 per cent to -1.3 per cent. The City had [...]
CITY VIEWS: WHAT ANNOYS YOU ABOUT YOUR BANK? September 15, 2009 PETER BOARDLEY CUNNINGHAM LINDSEY“I think things are much the same now as they have always been, and changes are due. Banks still overcharge for overdrafts and bounced cheques, although I understand that this could soon be addressed. Currently a lot of people get free banking at the expense of others who maybe go a small [...]
Lehman Bros bondholders may be owed up to 44bn September 14, 2009 THE trustee holders of collapsed Lehman Brothers’ senior bonds said the debt holders may be owed as much as $73bn (£44bn), after losing their investments when the bank filed for bankruptcy protection a year ago, according to court documents. Wilmington Trust Company claims that holders of the senior debt of the failed bank are estimated [...]
Q&A: BUYING September 10, 2009 Camilla DellMANAGING PARTNER AT BLACK BRICK Q. Dear Camilla, I have had my offer accepted on a house, have had everything done but now the seller has decided to pullout with no explanation. Is there anything I can do legally to prevent this? A. One of the fundamental problems of purchasing a property in the [...]
Britain needs very large spending cuts September 10, 2009 GENERAL Motors’ sensible sale of its Opel/Vauxhall division to Magna, the Canadian firm, has already prompted fresh demands for more handouts to ensure car production remains in the UK. The Germans, after all, have pledged cash to save Opel jobs; so we should do the same with Vauxhall before it is too late – or [...]