Oils and banks lift the large caps but defensives slide June 29, 2009 THE FTSE 100 gained 1.3 per cent yesterday, boosted by strength in oil majors and banks, and reflecting early gains on Wall Street. The index closed 53.02 points higher at 4,294.03, recovering most of last week’s 1.5 per cent decline. “What is most impressive about today’s rally is the breadth of the buying. Most sectors [...]
Housebuilders hail stability but warn mortgage drought will hurt July 9, 2009 Barratt shows signs of stability as volumes pick up but mortgage drought continues Barratt Developments yesterday reported a 19 per cent fall in private house prices over the last 12 months and warned that a sustained improvement in training conditions would remain elusive until the availability of mortgage finance recovers. However, the group has witnessed [...]
WOMEN LAWYERS IN THE CITY July 28, 2009 CLARE MCCONNELLPARTNER, STEPHENSON HARWOOD AND CHAIR, ASSOC OF WOMEN SOLICITORS SURVEYS continue to show that the progress of women lawyers in the profession, and into partnership, has stalled. Even in the 21st century it is still true that women shoulder the majority of the responsibility for childcare or care of other dependants even when they [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 19, 2009 THE SUNDAYSThe Sunday TelegraphENGINE IN DRIVE FOR EXPANSIONThe advertising agency that created the 118 directory enquiries runners is seeking £50m to fund an international expansion drive that will take it to the US and the Far East. The Engine Group has appointed advisers at Jefferies and the corporate finance arm of Ingenious Media to secure [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 19, 2009 THE SUNDAYSThe Sunday TelegraphENGINE IN DRIVE FOR EXPANSIONThe advertising agency that created the 118 directory enquiries runners is seeking £50m to fund an international expansion drive that will take it to the US and the Far East. The Engine Group has appointed advisers at Jefferies and the corporate finance arm of Ingenious Media to secure [...]
GOLD A GOOD BET IN ALL CONDITIONS June 17, 2009 NICHOLAS BROOKSHEAD OF RESEARCH AND INVESTMENT STRATEGY, ETF SECURITIES SINCE the start of the year, the economic outlook has changed significantly and global depression has been averted. However, we are still in a period of deflation, as RPI figures out earlier this week showed. In May, inflation fell yet again in the UK, from -1.1 [...]
UK SERVICES SECTOR OUT OF RECESSION June 3, 2009 A SURPRISE return to growth for the services sector recorded in May boosted hopes yesterday, suggesting that Britain could be the first major economy to recover from the financial crisis. The CIPS/Markit UK services sector purchasing managers’ index (PMI) released yesterday recorded a reading of 51.7, above the critical 50 mark that separates expansion from [...]
Higher mortgage rates are here to stay July 12, 2009 SO Nationwide is offering a mortgage that will allow some of its customers suffering from negative equity to move homes. So far, so mundane – but the loan will be worth 125 per cent of the value of the new property. I spent an hour debating this with David Kuo of Motley Fool, the popular [...]
Osborne hits out at City in key speech June 9, 2009 TORY shadow chancellor George Osborne yesterday said the City’s focus on “illusory” short-term gains had damaged the financial sector and the entire economy. Speaking at the Association of British Insurers (ABI) conference, Osborne said that City regulation needed to be reformed to “reduce the risks the financial sector poses to the rest of the economy”. [...]
FS recruitment shows muted recovery signs July 22, 2009 AFTER the bleakest period in the City’s job markets for many years, there have been flickering signals in the past few weeks that financial recruitment is inching its way back towards the light. But the message from recruiters is to treat such signs with extreme caution for now. Earlier this month, recruitment firm Hays reported [...]