What Westfield tells us about UK Plc March 28, 2010 IF you want to understand what is happening to the economy, you could do worse than to check out the Westfield shopping centre in West London on a weekend. The place was packed to the rafters on Saturday afternoon, with long queues in front of every single one of the dozens of restaurants and cafes; [...]
Optimism returns as flood of firms set for London flotations February 18, 2010 GOLD mining giant Barrick Gold yesterday led a spirited charge by companies back into the London initial public offering (IPO) markets, after quavering demand from investors sank prospects for three new flotations in the space of just over a week. Barrick announced plans to spin off its African assets into a new company, African Barrick [...]
Retail bonds launch online February 1, 2010 A NEW online trading platform will open up the corporate bond and gilt market to the retail sector. The launch of a new order book by the London Stock Exchange (LSE) yesterday will allow far greater access to private investors. Of an estimated 10,000 bond packages available, only 200 were readily available to retail investors. [...]
New volatility products help investors to hedge April 28, 2010 EUROPE’s sovereign debt crisis has gained momentum this week after Greece’s debt was downgraded to junk status. Similar to the financial shock in 2008, this has rocked global stock indices and volatility has spiked higher in recent days. Volatility indices, such as the Vix in the US and VSTOXX in Europe, measure the “fear” in [...]
The girl that’s helping City ladies sparkle May 6, 2010 LAUREN Adriana could have taken the easy route of gliding, It-Girl style, through her twenties. At 24, she is fashion aristocracy, being the grand-daughter of designer Paul Smith and the child of fashion world insiders. She’s friends with all the right people (including the world’s most famous jeweller Joel Arthur Rosenthal, known as JAR) and [...]
The man who could be chancellor plans radical changes for the City May 3, 2010 Allister Heath and David Crow pay a visit to Vince Cable ahead of the last week of the election campaign FEW politicians have emerged from the financial crisis with their reputation intact. Vince Cable must be the only one who has actually enhanced his, with his brand of left-wing policies playing perfectly to the shifting [...]
Weak pound fuels London sales boost January 18, 2010 SHOP sales in the capital soared over Christmas as tourists and Londoners embarked on spending sprees. The British Retail Consortium (BRC) reported that in London sales jumped 12 per cent in December – the best performance since it started publishing the figures in 2002. Visitors from Europe, China and the Middle East hit the shops, [...]
City mourns Sir Brian Pitman March 11, 2010 SIR Brian Pitman, one of the most respected bankers of his generation, has died aged 78. Pitman, who was latterly chairman of Virgin Money, led Lloyds Bank for 18 years before retiring almost a decade ago. In his time as chief executive and then chairman of Lloyds, Pitman built the bank from a £1bn business [...]
Acquisitions are back on the agenda this year March 14, 2010 M&A teams in investment banks all over London must be salivating at the prospect of a wave of new deals. Acquisitions are back on the agenda. In many ways it makes sense. Last year many companies re-trenched, rebuilt their balance sheets and hoped for the best. They have been hoarding cash but now wonder if [...]
Primark fuels sales growth at Associated British Food February 22, 2010 PRIMARK growth has helped to fuel a predicted “substantial rise in profits” at parent company Associated British Food. The London-based group said in a trading update it expected a jump in half-year earnings and a strong full year. Its 196-strong discount chain Primark saw an 8 per cent rise in sales – with stores in [...]