Thanksgiving week will hit stocks despite higher start November 22, 2009 UK and European stock markets are set to make a move higher this morning, following on from a rebound in Dow stocks late in the day on Friday off their lows. GFT is quoting the FTSE 100 index to open up 24 points from Friday’s close, at a level of 5,275. The German DAX is [...]
Confidence surges ahead on buoyant hopes for economy October 6, 2009 CONSUMER confidence leapt ahead in September to its highest level since April last year, riding on improved housing market data and hopes that the worst of the recession is over, the Nationwide Building Society said today. Nationwide’s monthly consumer confidence index rose by six points in September to 71, taking it to 24 points higher [...]
USFed raises outlook for 2009 growth November 24, 2009 AMERICA’S Federal Reserve upped its forecast for economic growth next year to a range of 2.5 per cent to 3.5 per cent as official statistics revealed the world’s biggest economy grew by less than originally thought in the third quarter. The US economy grew by 2.8 per cent between July and September, well below the [...]
Improved GDP numbers will add to the growing confidence in sterling December 21, 2009 ALL the signs are pointing to an upward revision to UK GDP growth this morning. The consensus among City economists is for a smaller 0.1 percent fall in GDP in the third quarter. But there is a real possibility that growth was actually stronger and could even have been flat on the quarter. A 2 [...]
Profit taking hits Wall St after rally October 27, 2009 THE S&P 500 and the Nasdaq fell yesterday as investors booked profits following the stock market’s recent run-up, while a weaker-than-expected reading on a measure of consumer confidence raised doubts about spending. Technology and consumer discretionary shares fared worse than the broader market as investors sold recent winners. Baidu’s disappointing outlook added to the negative [...]
Confidence returns to UK businesses April 11, 2010 CONFIDENCE amongst UK businesses about the future of the economy has surged to pre-recessionary levels for the first time since the crisis hit at the end of 2007, according to the latest report by accountancy firm BDO Stoy Hayward. BDO’s Optimism index jumped from 99.4 to 103.2 in March, a high not seen since the [...]
SEC bolsters rules on loan securitisations April 7, 2010 WALL Street regulators yesterday proposed issuers of mortgage-backed securities and similar instruments disclose more about the underlying loans and keep five per cent of the credit risk in some circumstances, in an effort to avoid a repeat of the financial crisis. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rule responds to the debacle involving securities packed [...]
WH Smith ups its dividend as profits rise April 22, 2010 WH Smith raised its dividend yesterday after a jump in first-half profits. The newspaper, books and stationery retailer reported a profit of £70m for the six months to 28 February, up four per cent. It hiked its dividend by 13 per cent to 6.1p. WH Smith’s first-half sales fell two per cent to £716m, while [...]
Fed says it will keep rates low November 4, 2009 US central bankers last night pledged to keep interest rates at record lows for an “extended period” as the economy clambers out of recession. The Federal Reserve said economic activity “has continued to pick up” but added that rising unemployment and tight credit conditions were holding back consumer confidence. Fed chairman Ben Bernanke and colleagues [...]
European shares rise despite ongoing worries over Greek bailout package May 3, 2010 EUROPEAN shares rose on yesterday, as upbeat US data boosted hopes of an economic recovery, although doubts persisted on Greece’s ability to implement the tough austerity measures it has agreed to under a $147bn (£96bn) bailout deal. The FTSEurofirst 300 index of leading European shares closed 0.2 per cent higher at 1,064.56 points — after [...]