Britain’s factories spring back from April’s slump July 7, 2011 MANUFACTURING output rose at its fastest pace in over a year in May as factories ramped up output after a royal wedding-related drop in April, official data showed yesterday. Manufacturing production jumped 1.8 per cent between April and May, after a 1.6 per cent drop in April. Yet the wider measure of industrial production only [...]
INSIDE THE ECB’S BOND STRATEGY August 8, 2011 Q.WHAT DOES THE ECB HOPE TO ACHIEVE? A.By purchasing Italian and Spanish bonds, the European Central Bank is aiming to stop further contagion across debt-burdened sections of the Eurozone. Q.HAVE ANY PURCHASES BEEN MADE SO FAR? A.While the ECB is thought to have entered the market yesterday, after an 18 week hiatus, details of its [...]
Stress tests denounced by analysts as backward-looking and inconsistent July 18, 2011 THE EU’s second round of stress tests precipitated a sharp fall in European bank shares yesterday after being slammed as “frustrating” and full of “widespread anomalies”. Analysts were scathing about the European Banking Authority’s (EBA) first ever tests, keeping price recommendations unchanged and saying that the exercise was effectively useless as a tool for distinguishing [...]
Earnings up at building group Carillion on better margins and good order book July 7, 2011 BUILDING firm Carillion said first-half underlying earnings grew strongly, helped by improved margins in its support services unit, and added it was well placed to deliver growth in 2011. “Margins are moving forwards in both support services and construction services. This statement puts Carillion on track for the eighth successive year of exceeding market expectations,” [...]
Investec targets bonus earners with mortgages December 5, 2010 HIGH earning City workers can take advantage of falling house prices, after a custom made “million plus” mortgage service was launched today. Professionals will be able to borrow against their bonuses, as well as regular income, said Investec Specialist Private Bank, which is launching the scheme. The mortgages will only be offered to people borrowing [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: IS TULLOW’S PERFORMANCE ON TRACK? July 5, 2011 ANGUS MCPHAIL | INVESTEC First results are in line with consensus. Revenues, capex, debt and production are all in line. Exploration and appraisal are on track with a 79 per cent success rate pointing to a prolifically successful explorer. HOOTAN YAZHARI | BANK OF AMERICA MERRILL LYNCH On the financial front Tullow remains solid. The [...]
ENTREPRENEURS NEWS | IN BRIEF July 24, 2011 MAJORITY THINK GETTING FUNDING IS EASY A sizable 39 per cent of Britain’s entrepreneurs expect conditions for accessing external sources of capital to be “normal” or “easy” in the next 12 months. This compares to 25 per cent who said this six months ago, according to research from May 2011 by Investec Specialist Private Bank. [...]
ENTREPRENEURS NEWS | IN BRIEF July 24, 2011 MAJORITY THINK GETTING FUNDING IS EASY A sizable 39 per cent of Britain’s entrepreneurs expect conditions for accessing external sources of capital to be “normal” or “easy” in the next 12 months. This compares to 25 per cent who said this six months ago, according to research from May 2011 by Investec Specialist Private Bank. [...]
Dancing Rain romps to Oaks victory June 3, 2011 William Haggas-trained 20-1 shot leads from the front as Dettori is hit with 10-day suspension TRAINER William Haggas toasted Dancing Rain’s surprise victory in the Investec Oaks yesterday at Epsom, joking: “That’s payback for my wife’s broken leg.” The 20-1 shot, ridden by Johnny Murtagh, set the pace and repeatedly mined her reserves of energy [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS July 12, 2011 BRITVIC RBS rates the soft drinks maker a “buy” with a £5 target price as it believes Britvic has now hedged against 95 per cent of its input cost inflation – expected to be 9-11 per cent in the UK this year – leaving it protected against further shocks. RBS expects third-quarter trading to be [...]