Booming emerging economies: the fund industry’s 2007 success story

16th January, 2008

EMERGING market funds grabbed 19 of the top 20 spots in Lipper’s annual rankings of British-registered retail funds in 2007, a resounding demonstration of the red-hot performance of the economies of China, India and Brazil.

Time is running out for BAA

12th December, 2007

Sunday 30 March 2008. That’s the date for the most hyped event of the year, the opening of Terminal 5

Determining when news is already ‘in the price’ is key to equity plays

16th January, 2008

Sometimes it is difficult to tell the difference between a forced seller and a considered asset allocation. Large-scale redemptions at mutual and hedge funds have been affecting markets since the start of the year. So while many equity investors continue to believe there is tremendous value around, it is the behaviour of other investors that gives them greatest pause for thought.

Emerging markets keep fine art sales in the picture

12th December, 2007

Fine art is both an investment and a hobby.

Aside from commercial property, Brits had a good year

16th January, 2008

JUST a couple of weeks into the New Year, and concerns are rife that 2008 is shaping up to be tough.

All change for Cadbury

12th December, 2007

Salmonella contamination forced Cadbury Schweppes to recall 1m chocolate bars in 2006; the last 12 months will be remembered for an even more costly setback.

Asset-backed securities will be given a stern fitness test this year

16th January, 2008

JUST as office drones fret over the state of their abs after festive excesses and check into a gym, so bond traders are mourning the health of their ABS (asset-backed securities).

Murdoch has his work cut out at NewsCorp next year

12th December, 2007

Next year will be decisive for NewsCorp.

Returns at risk as European shares fail to factor in risk of earnings drop

16th January, 2008

It REMAINS very unlikely that the British economy, the eurozone or even America will suffer from a recession this year.

Internet sales surge ahead

12th December, 2007

During the heady days of the dotcom bubble, it sometimes seemed that it would be only a matter of time until every purchase was made online.

If 2008 is the year of the bear, inverse ETFs could prove a handy defence

16th January, 2008

OPINION is still fiercely divided: is the choppy performance of equity markets over the last few painful months an aberration, or does 2008 herald a new bear market?

Regardless of how the argument eventually pans out, however, there is no reason why hedge funds, the supposed masters of making money in falling markets, should be the only ones to earn returns if equities do finish the year below their opening point.

Big pharma catches cold as new drug pipeline dries up

12th December, 2007

BIG PHARMA’S sniffle has turned into full-blown flu in the past year.

Investment crumbles as cracks show in property

12th December, 2007

EVEN the best properties struggle to attract buyers when cracks start to appear in the masonry. And appear they did mid-year in the commercial property market – a market that, on some indications, is now positively crumbling.

Turf wars: mounting competition in online trading drives fees downwards

16th January, 2008

IT IS not only Britain’s retailers who are cutting prices.

Builders put up barricades

12th December, 2007

THE decade-long construction boom is over. The Construction Products Association, the industry’s leading statistical provider, has warned that its already slashed 2008 growth prediction of 1.8% remains overly-optimistic.

FTSE CNBC Global 300

16th January, 2008

The performance of the world's largest companies over the past week

➲ It’s a write-off

THE latest investment banking stories are a reminder of a great back-and-forth from Seinfeld, the American comedy show.

Why Lloyd’s can’t afford to sit on its laurels next year

12th December, 2007

Lloyd’s of London may remember 2007 as the year in which it won back its cherished A+ credit rating from Standard & Poor’s – courtesy of Warren Buffett, who took the Equitas reinsurance vehicle off the London market’s hands in a $13.9bn (£6.8bn, E9.4bn) deal.

Performance of US stock market suggests recession is on the way

16th January, 2008

WHEN considering the US stock market’s record as a leading economic indicator, don’t forget Paul Samuelson’s famous line from four decades ago.

FTSE CNBC Global 300

9th January, 2008

The performance of the world’s largest companies over the past week

Inquiries put BAE firmly in firing line

12th December, 2007

BAE Systems knows how to put on a good show. On 13 December, the Red Arrows, flying BAE-manufactured Hawk jets, performed for the crowds in Abu Dhabi – part of a tour by Britain’s aerobatic display team sponsored by BAE and Rolls-Royce.