Bradford & Bingley liquidation cleared by European Union January 25, 2010 EU REGULATORS yesterday cleared the liquidation of failed British bank Bradford & Bingley after a request from UK authorities, which broke up and partly nationalised the lender nearly two years ago. Hit by a sharp rise in funding costs during the credit crunch, Bradford & Bingley sold its savings business and branch network to Spain’s [...]
REVENUES ARE CRUCIAL TO US EARNINGS January 18, 2010 CFD MARKET STRATEGIST, GFT LAST year finished on a high note for global equity markets and this euphoria carried through into the first week of 2010. But after having shot out of their starting blocks, equities have clipped the first hurdle as the fourth quarter earnings season kicked off in the US. Aluminium giant Alcoa [...]
Gain an insight into markets by looking at yield curves March 10, 2010 MOORAD CHOUDHRY HEAD OF TREASURY, EUROPE ARAB BANK WHILE not necessarily as zealous as Ronald Ryan – the preface of his 1997 book Yield Curve Dynamics contains the immortal line “God bless the yield curve” – I happily and enthusiastically recommend that all investors, whatever their market, pay careful attention to the yield curve, its [...]
Britain’s eurozone liabilities revealed February 11, 2010 THE exposure of Britain to the eurozone’s weakest members was laid bare last night as French and German officials scrambled to agree a rescue package for Greece. Based on Bank for International Settlement numbers, in total the UK’s financial sector has just under £250bn in exposure to Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece and Spain (Piigs). The data [...]
Shared ownership suits City workers, not just teachers January 28, 2010 LONDON house prices might have risen some 5 per cent since last January but as any first-time buyer will tell you, it is tougher than ever to get on the property ladder. With mortgage approvals still below their long-term average and deposits often as high as 40 per cent, even young professionals earning a decent [...]
House prices continue to strengthen in December January 7, 2010 HOUSE prices in the UK recorded their sixth consecutive monthly rise in December, data from the Halifax showed yesterday, though the mortgage lender expects prices to plateau over the rest of 2010. Prices rallied one per cent between November and December, bringing the cost of the average UK home to £169,042. December also saw house [...]
Take control of your pension plan and enjoy your old age April 8, 2010 IT IS estimated that only one in three adults under 30 are putting any money at all into a pension scheme. And little wonder when young people’s primary concerns are paying off debts accumulated in student years, saving up for those 40 per cent mortgage deposits and, truth be told, enjoying life. Retirement seems far [...]
Politicians begin to focus on real City issues February 14, 2010 Fresh from leading a City delegation to UAE and Qatar last week and before I head out to Bahrain and Saudi Arabia tomorrow, I see that the debate on reform of the financial services industry is slowly beginning to shift. Talk of a global bank tax is rife following Gordon Brown’s declaration that he expects [...]
CITY VIEWS: DO YOU THINK ECONOMIC PROSPECTS FOR 2010 ARE BETTER THAN THEY WERE IN 2009? January 4, 2010 ANDY APPELBAUM | DIAGONAL CONSULTING “I hope they don’t raise interest rates too quickly this year because my mortgage would cost more. I think levels of unemployment are going to stay about the same, but I think we’re through the worst of the recession.” BEVERLEY GALLEY | SMBCE “I’m quite optimistic. I think the market [...]
Wall Street levy to raise $100bn January 12, 2010 THE Obama administration could net more than $100bn (£62bn) with its planned special levy on Wall Street’s giants, it emerged yesterday. Officials are mulling a levy on America’s top banks to tap into anti-Wall Street sentiment ahead of the earnings season. The scheme has yet to be officially confirmed but is being spun as a [...]