FTSE steadied by Greek breakthrough July 21, 2011 The FTSE 100 started solidly this morning as it emerged that France and Germany had reached an agreement on a second bailout for Greece. Banks led the way as investors gained confidence in stocks recently buffeted by fears of exposure to the debt crisis which has engulfed the Eurozone. Leaders of the 16-country bloc will [...]
FTSE breaks eight day streak on jitters over China and Euro July 6, 2011 THE FTSE 100’s eight-day winning streak came to a halt yesterday as worries over debt contagion in Europe and the demand outlook in China hit banking and commodity stocks. The top share index closed 21.11 points or 0.4 per cent lower at 6,002.92, having risen more than six per cent in the previous eight sessions [...]
Banks in retreat after Portugal downgrade July 6, 2011 The FTSE 100 lost ground on opening today after Moody’s cut Portugal’s credit rating to “junk” sending banking shares down. As the Eurozone crisis deepened investors abandoned risky equities as banks’ exposure to the crisis in the eurozone came under the spotlight. The euro fell sharply after the Moody’s four-notch downgrade to Ba2, with the [...]
Serco aims for revenues of £5bn next year despite UK uncertainty June 28, 2011 OUTSOURCING group Serco expects its revenues to hit £5bn by the end of 2012, it said in a pre-close statement yesterday. The firm, which operates immigration centres, health services and the Docklands Light Railway, said it expects good organic growth through the year, giving an adjusted operating profit margin of 6.3 per cent. But the [...]
FTSE falls again as fears over economy continue June 2, 2011 BRITAIN’S top shares slid for a second day as worries over weak economic data drove investors from risky assets ahead of Friday’s US non-farm payroll numbers. The FTSE 100 closed down 80.69 points, or 1.4 per cent, at 5,847.92, with volume 93 per cent of its 90-day average. The index fell one per cent in [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS June 1, 2011 FRANCE TELECOM Nomura rates the company a “buy” and has a target price of €19.20 (£16.84). The broker has raised its earnings forecasts ahead of consensus following an investor day. The broker also thinks that the company is well placed to step up its investment phase in the near term, and sees an opportunity for [...]
Serco jumps on Indian buy May 31, 2011 SERCO shares were among the top risers in the FTSE 100 yesterday after the outsourcing giant bought Indian back-office company Intelenet for £385m. Serco, which has been gunning for more work overseas, said it expects the business process outsourcing (BPO) marketplace to grow up to 15 per cent a year to reach $291bn (£177bn) globally [...]
SERCO’S ADVISERS ON THE INTELENET DEAL May 31, 2011 THOUGH most of the work on Serco’s deal to buy Intelenet was done in India, magic circle law firm Linklaters advised the outsourcer on the UK aspects of the purchase. Leading the team was William Buckley (pictured above), who joined Linklaters as a trainee solicitor in 1990 before working his way up to partner in [...]
Banks help FTSE to end May on a high but fear still reigns May 31, 2011 BANKS and energy stocks, buoyed by hopes of a second bailout for Greece, helped Britain’s FTSE 100 higher yesterday, but traders remained concerned about buying momentum in the short-term. “Uncertainty for the near term outlook still remains bearish until the markets can pick up positive momentum and clear hurdles to give the bulls a chance [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS May 24, 2011 May Gurney Margaret Ford, Baroness Ford of Cunninghame, will become non-executive chairman at the company’s AGM on 7 July 2011. In the interim she will be appointed to the board as a non-executive director, with immediate effect. Gurney, 53, recently retired from Serco as senior independent director and has extensive public company experience, including Grainger [...]