Biotechnology company Prothena to raise $114m with public offering April 8, 2015 Irish biotechnology company Prothena has confirmed a public offering which is expected to raise more than $100m (£67m). The firm, which is listed on Nasdaq and concentrates on developing new antibodies for treating diseases such as Parkinson's and inflammatory disorders, said it will sell 3.3m ordinary shares at $37 per share which it expects to [...]
Sutherland snaps up SuperGroup shares March 31, 2015 FORMER Co-operative Group chief executive – and current SuperGroup boss – Euan Sutherland (insert) yesterday announced he was buying just over £99,000 worth of shares in the Superdry owner at 980.50p a share. He now holds 11,613 shares. Analysts have enthused about the clothes retailer. Analysts at RBC Capital upgraded shares of SuperGroup to a [...]
Why businesses and employees are cheering low inflation March 24, 2015 Low inflation will benefit businesses which are likely to pass gains onto employees through wage hikes, businesses have said. James Sproule, chief economist at the Institute of Directors said: "We welcome the news that inflation has once again fallen. It is particularly encouraging that this has been driven by falling fuel costs. This is putting [...]
FTSE at a record high as miners lifted by metals – London Report March 23, 2015 BRITAIN’S blue-chip share index set a record high yesterday as mining stocks rallied with firmer metals prices, outpacing weakness in shares such as Weir Group. The UK mining index gained 2.2 per cent as copper hit a two-month high, driven by a weaker dollar on expectations the US Federal Reserve will stay accommodative for the [...]
ECB meeting preview: What traders should expect from it March 2, 2015 Despite a range of economic indicators suggesting that the Eurozone economy has finally begun to turn a corner, markets had an uncertain start to the week. Although the currency bloc’s unemployment rate slipped to 11.2 per cent in January and a flash estimate of inflation came in at a better-than-expected -0.3 per cent in February, [...]
Insurance sector to be hit by M&A fever as Fairfax buys Brit February 17, 2015 Analysts said yesterday that Brit’s acquisition by Canadian firm Fairfax Financial Holdings could be the precursor to other deals set to sweep the insurance market. Shares in Brit jumped by 11.23 per cent following the news that Fairfax had made an offer of £1.22bn that has been agreed by private equity owners CVC and Apollo, [...]
Commodities and banks drag FTSE 100 lower – London Report February 10, 2015 BRITAIN’S top equity index drifted lower yesterday, hit by a drop in banks and commodity stocks, although improved sales for battered supermarkets lent support to the market. Fresh signs of economic weakness in China, the world’s biggest consumer of metals, hit mining companies, with the FTSE 350 Mining Index down 2.8 per cent. It closed [...]
City Moves for 28 January 2015 | Who’s switching jobs January 27, 2015 Hamlins The law firm has announced the appointment of Charles Bezzant as partner. He will be heading up its real estate finance team, and joins from Reed Smith, where he qualified in 2000. Bezzant’s practice covers all finance aspects of property investment and development transactions. RBC Global Asset Management Royal Bank of Canada’s asset management [...]
Royal Bank of Canada snaps up LA’s City National for $5.4bn January 22, 2015 Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) yesterday expanded its operations south of the border, buying City National Corporation in a $5.4bn (£3.6bn) deal. The Canadian lender already has a large investment banking and wealth management presence in the US, and wants to expand its reach. “This combination creates a powerful expansion platform for focused long-term growth in [...]
Eurozone money printing policy expected this week January 18, 2015 European officials are expected to announce the start of full on quantitative easing (QE) this Thursday. QE involves buying large amounts of typically sovereign assets with newly created bank reserves – cash that banks keep at the central bank. It is hoped that QE will reignite the stagnant Eurozone economy and bring inflation closer to [...]