RETAIL BANK OF THE YEAR September 5, 2010 LIFE is still hard for banks, especially the high-street variety. One of our list is government-owned, others are engaged in a vicious fight to entice customers with tasty offers, and one is a brave and innovative newcomer. All are fascinating – and well-known – companies in this vital and fast-changing sector. Don’t miss the City event [...]
FTSE nears two-month high on US stats and merger chat September 1, 2010 MERGER talk among the travel, telecoms and mining sectors helped Britain’s top shares to their biggest daily gain in almost two months yesterday, as strong manufacturing data from the US and China boosted sentiment. The FTSE 100 closed up 141.19 points, or 2.7 per cent at 5,366.41, its strongest daily performance since 6 July and [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: IS THE WORST OVER FOR THE PROPERTY MARKET? February 9, 2010 KEVIN DAVIDSON | CAPITAL ECONOMICS Momentum in the City is up but it is not clear that the rental downturn is over outside of the City which could affect long term capital values. Banks are still exposed to the commercial market and it could quickly become overvalued again – it is not profitable or stable [...]
HSBC’s spectacular boardroom row September 23, 2010 BIG companies need to get their PR in order. BP’s reaction to its oil spill was all over the place at first, with its CEO Tony Hayward repeatedly putting his foot in it; the Prudential failed to communicate adequately to the media and shareholders during its hopelessly mismanaged bid for AIA. Now, disappointingly, it is [...]
Why your dream home may just be up in Scotland’s northern reaches August 26, 2010 THE number of holiday homes in the UK is on the rise, according to research by Knight Frank. After declining in 2008, the number of British second homes swelled 2.6 per cent last year and is set to rise another 2 per cent this year. So with demand once again on the up, buyers should [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: HOW HAS HAMMERSON PREFORMED THIS YEAR? INTERVIEWS BY EMMA SADOWSKI February 22, 2010 AARON GUY | COLLINS STEWART They were slightly ahead of my expectations. Their UK portfolio went up and it was more than I expected but the French portfolio was in line with what I thought. Their results are more driven by the market than the company itself. TINA COOK | CHARLES STANLEY The outlook statement [...]
A Qatari takes on Wall St October 20, 2010 KAPITOIL BY TEDDY WAYNE Duckworth, £8.99 IT’S 1 October, 1999 and Karim, a genius computer progammer from Doha, is landing in New York. He’s been brought to help a company called Schrub Equities protect itself from the Y2K bug – New York’s biggest security concern at the time. The opening of this first novel by [...]
DTZ on target as hopes of a recovery rise March 15, 2010 PROPERTY broker DTZ Holdings yesterday said it remains on target to meet market expectations for its full year results, anticipating £70m of cost savings for the period. Boosting hopes of recovery in the sector, DTZ reported better levels of activity in its key markets of London and Paris and increased activity in the investment and [...]
Cannes awaits property fest March 14, 2010 THIS week sees the heavyweights of the property world embark on their annual pilgrimage to Cannes for MIPIM, Europe’s largest property fair. The four day event – known for its yachts and late night parties – is likely to be more upbeat than last year when the property market was still in the midst of [...]
Liberty set to split its £6bn empire in two February 4, 2010 THE UK’s largest shopping centre owner will split its business in two in a dramatic corporate restructure. Liberty International will divide its £6.1bn UK property portfolio into two separate companies in what will be the biggest demerger on record in the listed real estate sector. The firm’s £4.4bn shopping centre business will be annexed into [...]