THE TIPSTER RESULTS ARE STILL THE MAIN DRIVER August 2, 2009 THIS week the focus will be clearly on the British banks, which will be releasing their second quarter earnings. While traders will be looking at the performance of the whole sector, spread betters should be particularly watching Lloyds Banking Group, which reports on Wednesday. Recently, there have been several bullish broker notes and the shares [...]
Newfound appetite for stocks does not mean a bull rally August 2, 2009 INVESTORS are regaining their appetite for equities in the wake of generally positive second quarter earnings results, according to a fund managers’ survey conducted last week by financial information company Thomson Reuters. As a percentage of a typical balanced portfolio, equities were at their highest since the end of August last year, just a couple [...]
US enjoys positive company reports July 30, 2009 US STOCKS rose yesterday as solid corporate profit reports and a drop in the number of Americans on jobless benefits gave investors reasons to buy equities following the S&P 500’s two days of losses. The market’s rally pushed the benchmark S&P 500 index earlier in the session to its highest intraday level in almost nine [...]
BP boosts FTSE as miners, telecoms and banks surge July 30, 2009 BRITAIN’S top share index ended close to a seven-month high yesterday, as better-than-expected earnings from the likes of BT boosted sentiment, lifting miners, banks and telecoms firms. The FTSE 100 closed up 1.9 per cent, or 84.08 points at 4,631.61 points, the highest level since January 6. The index is up 9 per cent so [...]
FTSE 100 hangs in there as investors regain confidence July 29, 2009 THE FTSE 100 rose yesterday as gains from financial stocks, boosted by strong numbers from the UK arm of Spain’s Banco Santander, and positive broker comment, outweighed a weak mining sector. The index closed 18.69 points, or 0.4 per cent, higher at 4,547.53, after ending 1.3 per cent lower on Tuesday when it failed to [...]
China’s banks weigh heavily on Wall St July 29, 2009 US STOCKS fell yesterday as investors worried that China’s banks could hit the brakes on lending to stem market excesses, a move that could curb the global economic recovery. Concerns about China hurt commodity prices and hit shares in the energy and raw materials sectors, while a steep drop in US durable goods orders in [...]
The subtle art of effective networking July 29, 2009 SINCE the Eighties heyday of power lunches and bulging Filofaxes, networking – the mysterious art of forming relationships with strangers for somewhat mercenary purposes – has been central to City life. To some it’s a necessary evil, to others it’s exciting – but in a recession-affected job market, it can be the difference between progressing [...]
Bullish Aussie dollar will be threatened by Chinese bubble July 28, 2009 THREE weeks ago, risk aversion was firmly back in the markets and commodity currencies were looking shaky. But equities and commodities have been surging across the board as investors rediscover their taste for risk. In such an environment, the Australian dollar ought to be doing well thanks to its economy’s dependence on exports of base [...]
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 [...]
Healthcare shares fend off US slump July 28, 2009 THE Dow and S&P 500 stock indices both put in slight falls yesterday, recovering from sharper declines in earlier trading, as investors shrugged off weak consumer confidence data and focused on positive earnings reports. Stocks in the healthcare sector led the afternoon rebound, with biotech shares rising a day after Amgen’s strong quarterly earnings report. [...]