Spencer Winfield at stockbroker Charles Stanley replies: When providing performance comparisons for a portfolio, a stockbroker or fund manager will normally compare the rise or fall of the portfolio they manage against a particular index or indices. The index will generally be chosen at the portfolio's creation and used as a benchmark against [...]
Beleaguered fund management group New Star Asset Management is locked in talks with its lenders over the group's £230m of debt after its shares fell back to an all-time low.
The situation has raised fears that investors may look for a quick exit from New Star funds. Already assets under management at [...]
Just weeks before Christmas, Aston Martin, Unilever and Halfords announced cuts to their workforces.
The losses will add to a growing tally as firms struggle in the worst economic downturn since the First World War.
Unemployment is at 1.8m, its highest level for 11 years. It is expected to rise to 3.3m by 2010.
Every day, about [...]
A 'significant and sustained' downturn in the economy has prompted the call from manufacturers, while struggling small businesses say that Chancellor Alistair Darling's Pre-Budget stimulus package does not go far enough.
The market is already anticipating another significant reduction in borrowing costs after last month's surprise 1.5 percentage point drop in the base rate.
City opinion [...]
John Duffield's struggling group said it was in 'advanced and constructive discussions' over its crippling £230m mountain of debt.
The request for shares to be suspended was made at the all-time low of just 14p this morning, having crashed 97% from a peak of 485p just 18 months ago. After the request was denied by [...]
A rally in the price of gold over the past month has seen it rise from about $740 per ounce, at the start of November, to $814 this week. And while its value remains under the $840 seen at the beginning of 2008, and considerably below its peak of more than $1,000 in [...]
Inflation eroded retirees' purchasing power, but deflation could be very bad news for some annuity holders.
There is now a growing risk of deflation, say experts. Prices are falling, leading to the measure of inflation to which annuities are related, the retail prices Index (RPI) doing likewise.
The Bank of England, governor, [...]
Staff at some of Woolworths' 815 stores were in tears, fearing they will have no money to buy food and presents or pay their bills.
The iconic firm, famous in the past for its pick and mix sweets and sales of music, has a proud history which dates back almost 100 years in the UK.
Administrators [...]
The rule change comes amid an increasing number of mergers in the building society sector and heightened concern among savers about their compensation coverage in the event of a society's collapse.
Unlike banks, merged building societies have had to operate under one FSA and compensation authorisation until now, meaning total savings coverage of [...]
More than 20 years have passed since Sid was invented to persuade ordinary people to buy shares in British Gas. The group has been transformed beyond recognition since then through a number of demergers and mergers.
One of the resultant companies, Centrica, still owns the British Gas brand, but the company has expanded into lots [...]
© 2008 Daily Financial News