FTSE stripped of £2.7bn by strong sterling February 22, 2015 The FTSE 350 was hit hard by the high pound in 2014, losing in excess of £2.7bn in sales, according to new analysis. For companies on the index with full year results with year ends up to the end of September, annual revenues on a like-for-like basis were down 1.7 per cent on the same [...]
Three reasons $10 oil is a very real possibility February 18, 2015 After a couple of weeks of rises during which oil prices gained 35 per cent, today they fell back by $1 to $61 per barrel, as investors showed renewed concern about a glut in the global supply of oil. Brent crude, the global benchmark, hit a six-year low of $45.19 in January – and the [...]
Wood Group hit by oil price drop so will cut $30m February 17, 2015 Aberdeen-based energy service company Wood Group expects to cut back on $30m (£19.5m) worth of expenses in 2015. The company yesterday reported a rise in profit of little under three per cent to $424.4m and saw its revenue go up by 7.8 per cent in 2014. An internal focus on efficiency will help Wood Group [...]
Eastern promise: Keys to investing in Asian markets February 17, 2015 Emerging Asia was one of the best performing regions in the five years leading up to the financial crisis, delivering a 20 per cent return per year in sterling terms. And despite the fact that, over the past two years, the region has underperformed developed markets, it remains a favourite place for UK investors to [...]
The rise of the expert patient has the power to transform the NHS February 12, 2015 The productivity of the NHS isn’t just important for our health. At 7 per cent of GDP, it matters for the whole economy. And this is why the next Parliament must see an efficiency revolution in the NHS, greater than any seen elsewhere or in the UK before. One important idea at the heart of [...]
General election stalemate set to rock stocks: Markets face historic uncertainty, UBS warns February 11, 2015 Uncertainty before and after 7 May threatens to make 2015 a turbulent year for markets. Markets will take a hit from historic levels of uncertainty before and after May’s General Election, analysis by a leading investment bank has warned. Share indices typically fall by an average of three per cent in the six months after [...]
Energy, oil and Sky’s football bill hurt FTSE – London Report February 11, 2015 THE UK and Gas index fell 0.6 per cent after crude dropped 2.3 per cent on expectations of persistent oversupply, a stronger dollar and a report showing US crude stockpiles at a record high yesterday. Meanwhile the main index was dragged lower by energy company movements as well as the fallout from Sky bidding for [...]
Landlords should not be the scapegoats for uninventive politicians February 8, 2015 If you’re a landlord, you could be forgiven for feeling like the ills of the world are being laid at your door. The Tories held landlords responsible for stemming illegal immigration, making passport and identity checks a legal requirement before any tenancy agreement can be signed. Labour enlisted them in the fight against climate change [...]
Aggregates firm CRH lifts FTSE as oil drama goes on – London Report February 2, 2015 Irish building supplies groups CRH offset a drop in airlines after Ryanair warned on its profit outlook to push the FTSE index higher yesterday. Shares in CRH, one of the top gainers in the FTSE 100 index , rose 7.2 per cent after the company said it had agreed to pay €6.5bn (£4.9bn) for assets [...]
US corporate results round up January 27, 2015 Caterpillar Caterpillar yesterday cut its 2015 profit outlook and warned the plunge in oil prices would hurt its energy equipment business, sending shares tumbling as much as eight per cent. During the final three months of 2014, Caterpillar’s energy business helped offset falling construction equipment sales and weakness in mining equipment orders due to lower [...]