BHP Billiton downgraded by Moody’s as commodity price rout continues to bite March 3, 2016 Moody's have downgraded BHP Billiton debt rating, saying the prolonged commodity price rout will continue to eat into the miner's balance sheet. The credit rating agency cut BHP's long-term debt rating by two notches to A3, citing the impact of metal prices on its earnings and cash flow. BHP today said that it will pay at least $1.1bn in compensation [...]
Lending to small businesses drops as banks increase borrowing under funding for lending scheme March 3, 2016 Bank lending to smaller businesses fell at the end of last year. Only £599bn was lent to smaller businesses in the final three months of 2015 from £755bn in the three months to September, according to data released by the Bank of England this morning. However, banks borrowed £6.3bn from the Bank of England of cheap loans over the [...]
Shawbrook’s share price follows profits higher at the challenger bank, as small business lending and buy to let loans soar March 3, 2016 SHAWBROOK chief executive Steve Pateman has warned the bank is unlikely to see its buy to let loan book grow as quickly in 2016, amid concerns the market is getting out of control. Earlier this year, Bank of England governor Mark Carney said recent developments in the booming buy to let mortgage market posed a [...]
Genel share price soars despite biggest loss ever: Former BP boss Tony Hayward oil firm Genel falls to £1bn loss March 3, 2016 Genel shares closed up 13.5 per cent today at 88.25p per share, despite reporting its biggest annual loss since a stock market flotation four years ago. This followed a previously announced writedown to its oil field reserves in Iraqi Kurdistan. The figures Genel's losses before tax ballooned by 271 per cent to $1.2bn, up from $312.8bn in 2014. Its revenue fell 33.8 per cent [...]
Eurozone recovery stalls as survey shows economy flirting with stagnation – Markit PMI March 3, 2016 The Eurozone economy is flirting with stagnation, with new survey data showing the currency-bloc's recent weak recovery could be coming to an end. Markit's purchasing managers index fell to a score of 53 in February, indicating the slowest growth for 13 months. Slowdowns were recorded in all of the Eurozone's big four, with growth dropping in Germany, [...]
Gala Coral earnings and revenue up, but Ladbrokes shares dip ahead of proposed bookmaker merger March 3, 2016 Gala Coral reported increases in revenue and earnings this morning ahead of its proposed merger with Ladbrokes. The results The bookmaker reported net revenue of £333.3m in the 16 weeks ending 16 January. This was up £47.1m, or 16 per cent, year on year. And, with growth in its retail divisions and online, it recorded earnings before [...]
Markit PMI: Service sector meltdown as growth falls to lowest in three years on Brexit fears March 3, 2016 The UK's services sector showed the weakest growth in three years in February, new figures have shown. The purchasing managers' index for the UK's dominant sector fell to 52.7 in February, down from 55.6 in January, a report by Markit showed. Any figure above 50 denotes growth. Analysts had expected the figure to dip slightly, to 55.1 – [...]
Seven years of quantitative easing and 0.5 per cent interest rates by the Bank of England: Who are the winners and losers? March 3, 2016 This Saturday will mark seven years since the Bank of England enacted its historic quantitative easing programme, and cut the UK’s main interest rate to 0.5 per cent, in a bid to save it from the financial crisis which was then tearing across the globe. Just like any other policy, it has thrown up winners and losers. Investors who [...]
Now Halifax says UK house prices dropped last month – but rose almost 10 per cent in the year to February March 3, 2016 It was a day of two house price indices today, and while Nationwide was insistent that house price growth was flat between January and February, figures from Halifax have shown prices fell by1.4 per cent. But Halifax's house price index, released today, also showed prices rose 9.7 per cent from last February – and were up [...]
McLaren chief executive Mike Flewitt: There is no way we will ever make an SUV March 3, 2016 As the automotive world’s great and good descended on Geneva for its annual motor show this week, one topic was being discussed: SUVs. After Porsche launched its mammoth Cayenne range in 2012, this year Maserati followed suit, with the $72,000 Levante. Even Ferrari came over all practical, with the launch of its four-seater GTC4 Lusso. [...]
