Energy stocks keep the FTSE warm despite banking falls October 27, 2009 THE FTSE 100 gained 0.2 per cent yesterday, keeping level after a rally from heavyweight energy issues offset weakness in banks and mining stocks. The index closed 9.23 points higher at 5,200.97, after ending 1 per cent lower on Monday. The blue-chip index has gained about 51 per cent since hitting a six-year low in [...]
Barclays eyes Standard Life Bank division September 28, 2009 BARCLAYS is eyeing a bid for the banking operations of insurance titan Standard Life, sources close to the situation said yesterday. The insurer is understood to have put its Standard Life Bank unit up for sale at a price of between £200m and £300m and people familiar with Barclays’ plans said that the business would [...]
Spencer Stuart takes on hunt for new UKFI chief September 23, 2009 HEADHUNTER Spencer Stuart has been tasked with finding a new chief executive for UK Financial Investments (UKFI), after rival Odgers Berndtson was dismissed because it hired a former Royal Bank of Scotland banker as a senior adviser. UKFI hired ex-Tory minister Virginia Bottomley, the chairman of Odgers, to lead the search last month after former [...]
EC says it has not told Lloyds to sell Halifax September 16, 2009 THE European Commission said yesterday that it had not struck a deal with Lloyds Banking Group that would see the lender dispose of Halifax in return for approval of the state aid it has received from the government. EC competition commissioner Neelie Kroes has repeatedly signalled that the bank will have to dispose of assets, [...]
Hoare Capital grabs veteran credit experts September 20, 2009 HOARE Capital, the wholesale broking boutique, has embarked on a hiring spree in its specialist credit team, ahead of a possible move to new offices in Mayfair. The firm, led by founding senior partner Nicholas Hoare, has brought in 10 new faces to its credit business. Among the appointments is Richard Gathercole, formerly of Bank [...]
FTSE hits a high but sale of Barclays shares prompts dip October 20, 2009 Britain’s top shares fell 0.7 percent yesterday, led down by banks after Qatar sold shares in Barclays while weaker-than-expected US data added to the negative sentiment. The benchmark FTSE 100 closed down 38.14 points at 5,243.40, having hit a fresh high for the year at 5,298.54 earlier in the session. Barclays fell 4.8 per cent [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING September 27, 2009 THE SUNDAYSThe Sunday TelegraphFSA TOLD TO CLEAN UP OIL MARKETSThe Financial Services Authority has been told to examine its statutes to ensure it can prosecute oil speculators practising market abuse. The financial watchdog must also consider bringing in stronger measures to detect speculators using techniques such as phone-tapping, as well as ensuring they have enough [...]
He’s seen off his own PM, but now the chancellor must beat the Tories April 14, 2010 WHEN all politicians around him are losing their heads, Alistair Darling is intent on keeping his. Having seen off an attempt to replace him with Gordon Brown’s favourite apparatchik Ed Balls – who wanted to use Labour’s final Budget to make vote-winning spending promises – the famously low-key chancellor says the new enemies of prudence [...]
SIR STUART UNVEILS A CELEBRITY CRUSH AND A HOT ‘N’ SPICY FETISH November 4, 2009 SIR Stuart Rose was on fire yesterday as he churned out Marks & Spencer’s (M&S) half-year figures in his customary staccato tones, pausing only to dwell upon his favourite subjects. The presentation, you see, included the unveiling of the retailer’s latest Christmas advertising campaign, which will this year feature regulars singer Myleene Klass and model [...]
SIR STUART UNVEILS A CELEBRITY CRUSH AND A HOT ‘N’ SPICY FETISH November 4, 2009 SIR Stuart Rose was on fire yesterday as he churned out Marks & Spencer’s (M&S) half-year figures in his customary staccato tones, pausing only to dwell upon his favourite subjects. The presentation, you see, included the unveiling of the retailer’s latest Christmas advertising campaign, which will this year feature regulars singer Myleene Klass and model [...]