Keith Wade: Is the world now heading for recession? March 13, 2020 | City Talk As I returned to the UK last weekend, my taxi driver talked of panic-buying and impending food shortages. Having wondered if I had stepped off at the wrong airport, it subsequently became clear that his thinking was very close to that of the markets. On Monday (9 March), equities sold off and credit spreads widened [...]
Premier Oil defends state of finances amid low oil prices March 13, 2020 Premier Oil has insisted its finances are strong after a major creditor called for it to cancel expensive North Sea oil projects with oil prices perilously low. Premier Oil told investors today it has hedged 30 per cent of its full year gas and oil entitlement production at $60 a barrel. This includes 40 per [...]
Italy and Spain ban short selling after record stock sell-off March 13, 2020 Italian and Spanish securities regulators have today implemented a ban on the short selling of more than 100 stocks following record losses yesterday. As a result, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has had to temporarily place a ban on short selling of those stocks on the FTSE. In Spain, the ban affects 69 stocks, including [...]
Transglobe Energy reports loss as oil turmoil continues March 12, 2020 Transglobe Energy was the latest company to post a difficult set of results today as turmoil on the world oil market continues. The Canadian company, which also has extensive operations in Egypt, reported a net loss of $4m (£3.1m) for 2019 swinging from a $15m profit in 2018. That included a $7.9m non-cash impairment loss [...]
ECB stimulus measures underwhelms investors disappointed by lack of rate cut March 12, 2020 The European Central Bank has unveiled a fresh stimulus package to help fight the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic , but markets were left dismayed as the ECB unexpectedly stopped short of an interest rate cut. With millions of European citizens under lockdown and equities across the continent in freefall, the ECB had come [...]
US stocks regain some ground after Fed pumps trillions into markets March 12, 2020 US stocks pared some of their losses in afternoon trading after the New York Federal Reserve said it would pump more than a trillion dollars into the short-term funding markets. Stocks crashed in early trading after President Donald Trump banned all travel to and from Europe in an effort to contain coronavirus, with the falls [...]
FTSE 100 crashes 10.9 per cent in worst one-day fall since 1987 March 12, 2020 The FTSE 100 suffered its second biggest one day fall in the history of the index, and the worst day since 1987, as it closed down 10.87 per cent. London’s blue-chip index plunged 639 points to close at 5,237 points, as global stocks suffered yet another meltdown after Donald Trump imposed a travel ban on [...]
Burford Capital delays its results blaming coronavirus disruption March 12, 2020 Burford Capital today said it was delaying its financial results after disruption from the coronavirus outbreak. The litigation funder said it had closed its New York office and was delaying its results by two-to-three weeks because of the disruption. Burford said two of its finance staff, who are mainly based in its New York office, [...]
Oil giants slump as Trump EU travel ban makes COVID-19 and price war effect worse March 12, 2020 Oil company shares have sunk today after the Brent crude price sunk below $34 a barrel, as the market absorbs news of President Trump’s travel ban. Shares in BP have fallen 11.18 per cent to 280p and those of Shell are also down 11.15 per cent at 1,165p. Tullow oil and TransGlobe Energy released results [...]
Tullow Oil swings axe at workforce after massive 2019 loss March 12, 2020 Low cost oil exploration company Tullow has warned it will cut over a third of its workforce as it reported a pre-tax loss for 2019 and warned of “material uncertainty” over its future. Tullow Oil unveiled a $1.7bn pre-tax loss in 2019, down from an $85m profit in 2018. And volatility in the world oil [...]