News

Your daily news update straight from the City PM newsroom in London

ECB speaks out over EU’s hedge fund directive

October 22, 2009

THE EUROPEAN Central Bank (ECB) has warned EU bureaucrats that their plans to clamp down on the hedge fund industry could damage competitiveness with rival fund centres like the US. In a legal opinion on the European Commission’s proposed directive to regulate hedge funds and private equity houses, the ECB added its voice to a [...]
Credit Suisse joins bumper profits haul

October 22, 2009

Credit Suisse became the latest banking giant to rack up strong profits yesterday, although its shares fell on fears that rivals may gate-crash the party. The Swiss bank posted a net profit of Sfr2.4bn (£1.4bn) in the three months to September, its best quarter this year and comfortably above analysts’ expectations of Sfr1.6bn. Buoyant financial [...]
PRINCELY NEWCOMER JOINS CITY CLUB SCENE

October 21, 2009

WORK hard and play hard has long been the City’s mantra, so dedicated party-goers will be happy to hear that a new club is coming to town. It’s not just any old dive, either – we’re talking about a true A-list hotspot, from the people behind Prince Harry’s favourite nightspot Mahiki. Clubowners Nick House and [...]
The numbers man on why London needs to give the right message

October 21, 2009

John Griffith-Jones definitely comes across as a man on a mission. Whether he’s talking about hooking accountancy giants KPMG up with as many of its European partners as possible, helping the banks through one of the most catastrophic crises in their history, preserving the status of London as a financial centre, or teaching young children [...]
Boeing slumps on back of 787

October 21, 2009

BOEING posted a larger-than-expected quarterly loss on costs related to its long-delayed 787 Dreamliner, but the world’s second-largest planemaker reaffirmed the commercial aircraft is on track to fly this year. Boeing said yesterday the aircraft would fly this year with first delivery set for the fourth quarter of 2010. “The surprise was they reiterated the [...]
BHP increases output of iron as demand picks up

October 21, 2009

MINING giant BHP Billiton upped its quarterly iron ore production to a record high for the third quarter, it said yesterday. Production of the metal went up by 11 per cent to 30.1m tonnes, as economic conditions pick up, particularly in China. Petroleum output from BHP was also at a record high as its projects [...]
Blue skies for UAL as chief sees upturn

October 21, 2009

UAL, the company which owns US airline United Airlines, reported a slump in traffic and earnings yesterday, but said it was beginning to see signs that business travel could soon improve. The number of passengers flying with the carrier fell 2.9 per cent for the third quarter, it said, while revenue slumped 20.3 per cent [...]
TUBE BREEZES IN

October 21, 2009

THE first ever air-conditioned tube train came to London yesterday, delivered by a low-loader lorry. It was then driven along the tracks from Amersham to Neasden. The tube will go into service next year, and is one of 58 S-stock models. They also feature walk-through cars and wider doors and walkways. The trains are set [...]
Life expectancy hampers pensions

October 21, 2009

New life expectancy projections published yesterday suggest that people will live considerably longer than was assumed when the government decided how the State Pension Age should go up, according to Watson Wyatt. When the government proposed increasing the State Pension Age to 66 by 2026, projections indicated that life expectancy for people turning 66 in [...]
Hedge funds normalise further

October 21, 2009

Hedge fund managers have regained their self-confidence, a report from the Northern European financial group showed yesterday. Liquidity and investability are key factors in their optimism, the data showed. “Hedge funds can look forward to a couple of really good years,” the group said. For hedge fund strategies, the group has a positive view of [...]