Osborne unveils plan for mortgage cap to cool off housing market June 12, 2014 CHANCELLOR George Osborne pushed the Bank of England closer to intervening in the housing market last night, encouraging governor Mark Carney to use radical new powers to limit mortgage lending. The Bank can now limit borrowers’ mortgages based on their income relative to the size of the loan – or stop them buying a house [...]
Mike Ashley weighs up bid for Evans Cycles January 26, 2015 SPORTS Direct founder Mike Ashley is looking to expand his retail empire after joining several suitors in considering a bid for Evans Cycles. Private equity group Active Capital hired Canaccord Genuity last year to find a buyer for the cycling specialist, which has 56 stores and employs around 1,200 people. Sports Direct is understood to [...]
Wall St up as Fed signals no rate hike hurry – New York Report January 7, 2015 US STOCKS rebounded yesterday from five straight sessions of losses after strong private sector jobs data and as minutes from the most recent Federal Reserve meeting reassured investors the bank was in no hurry to start raising interest rates. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 212.88 points, or 1.23 per cent, to 17,584.52, the S&P [...]
City Moves for 24 March 2015 | Who’s switching jobs March 23, 2015 Baker Tilly The accountancy and business advisory firm has appointed Steve Hopkins as a consultant in its restructuring and recovery practice. He was previously head of corporate insolvency at Barclays Bank, and has over 20 years’ experience in restructuring and insolvency. LCH.Clearnet Frank Soussan has been appointed global head of CDSClear at the clearing house. [...]
Park Lodge, Knightsbridge: The prime central London house that has everything January 29, 2015 If you see no greater reward than looking at the fruits of your labour, then this home in Knightsbridge could be for you. A four bedroom house in the heart of the West End – and, in this case, within sight of Harrods – may sound like reward enough but Park Lodge, on Ennismore Street, [...]
Paddy Power share price jumps on €392m payout to shareholders after record profit March 3, 2015 The figures Paddy Power is paying out – this time to shareholders – to the tune of €392m (£285m) after record pre-tax profit of €167m in 2014, up from €126.6m and a rise of 21 per cent. The cash of 800 cents per share will come from surplus cash and planned debt raising. The windfall sent shares surging nine per [...]
CRH’s concrete bid for Holcim Lafarge assets January 22, 2015 IRISH building materials firm CRH has confirmed that it is in talks to buy the assets that Holcim and Lafarge are selling off in advance of their mega-merger. The Dublin-based company said that while there can be no certainty that the discussions will result in a transaction, if an acquisition goes ahead it will most [...]
Apple helps Nasdaq to a healthy rise – New York Report February 23, 2015 THE Nasdaq ended higher yesterday for a ninth straight day following gains in Apple, while the Dow and S&P 500 eased off recent record highs as lower oil prices dragged down energy shares. The Nasdaq’s winning run was its longest since September 2010, putting the index closer to its 5,132.52 all-time intraday high, reached in [...]
Inflation report to give clues on rate hike date – London Report February 8, 2015 THE BANK of England’s quarterly inflation report is this week expected to offer an insight into whether historically-low interest rates will be increased this year or next. Howard Archer, of IHS Global Insight, said: “The Bank of England will obviously have to cut its near-term inflation forecasts sharply given that consumer price inflation fell sharply [...]
Scotland’s prime property market leaps as buyers race to avoid stamp duty increase February 23, 2015 The number of upmarket homes being sold in Scotland jumped 88 per cent between the second quarter and the fourth quarter of last year, and more than double the figure for the first three months of the year, as buyers raced to avoid a hike in transaction costs due to take place later this year. [...]