Cash in on the Borrowing Blitz:
*Provident Financial (PFG), Cattles (CTT), Albemarle & Bond (ABM), H&T (HAT), Debt Free Direct (DFD), Tenon (TNO), Begbies Traynor (BEG) and Vantis (VTS).
Foremost:
*Take profits – Clapham House (CPH), JD Wetherspoon (JDW), Prezzo (PRZ), Restaurant Group (RTN).
*Sell – Regent Inns (REG), Kingfisher (KGF).
*Speculative buy – PV Crystalox (PVCS), Zenergy Power (ZEN).
*Hold Falkland Oil & Gas (FOGL), JJB Sports (JJB), Delcam (DLC), Axon (AXO), nCipher (NCH), Flomerics (FLO).
*Buy ZTC Communications (ZTC), Finsbury Food (FIF), VT Group (VTG), Faroe Petroleum (FPM), Avon Rubber (AVON), Paragon (PAG), Reckitt Benckiser (RB.), Tesco (TSCO) and Unilever (ULVR).
*Avoid – ScS (SUY), Land of Leather (LAN), Woolworths (WLW), Jessops (JSP), Alexon (AXN), French Connection (FCCN) and Marchpole (MPH).
Plays of the week:
*Buy - Avon Rubber (AVON) and Sainsbury (SBRY).
2007's Top 10 floats:
*Buy – Wellstream (WSM), Applied Intellectual Capital (AINC), Nighthawk (HAWK), Worldspreads (WSPR), Global Maritime (GME) and Helius Energy (HEGY).
*Take profits - Dragonwave (DWI).
*Hold - Commercial Group Properties (CMGP), VPhase (VPHA) and Leni Gas & Oil (LGO).
Trading Plays:
*Buy - Tesco (TSCO) and Ladbrokes (LAD).
*Sell - Debenhams (DEB) and Taylor Wimpey (TW.).
The Lex Column:
*As simple as ABX – A market than can swing about as wildly as the ABX index - a benchmark for mortgage-backed securities, is probably not being driven by fundamentals.
*Spreading your bets - Volatility often tops the list of excuses for a lousy quarter - but, for the UK's largest financial spreadbetting firm, it's a fundamental driver.
*Buoyant Bouygues - The conglomerate's success in houses and roads makes French construction look exceptional in nervous times.
*CIC - Wanted: managers to run $200 billion portfolio. Pay not commensurate with market rates; controversy (virtually) guaranteed.
*Wall Street banks and litigation - Wall Street is coming in for a reputational kicking and has much more to worry about than subpoenas landing on the mat.
The Lombard Column:
*RBS (RBS) should start opening up ABN's bankers.
*Whistle-stop (Standard Chartered (STAN)).
*Dog's dinner suit (Moss Bros (MOSB)).
Power Player:
*Willy Strothotte, Xstrata (XTA) chairman.
Further news:
*Mandelson challenges.
*Boom time for America's new retirees.
*Goldman Sachs' glory may be short-lived.
*Rate cut hopes lift housebuilders as Footsie snaps back.
*Inmarsat (ISAT) takes off on New York interest.
*Private equity bid hopes boost Abbot Group (ABG).
*RAB (RAB) shrugs off Rock (NRK) effect.
*Electronic Arts bid speculation lifts Sci Entertainment (SEG).
The Business Editor’s Column:
*New ingredient in poisonous alphabet soup (CDOs).
*Brewing up nicely (Scottish & Newcastle (SCTN)/Carlsberg).
*Vivendi (VIV) enjoying its second life.
Business Big Shot:
*Simon Bentley.
The Tempus Column:
*Hold - Stagecoach (SGC).
*Take profits - Standard Chartered (STAN).
*Buy - Ath Resources (ATH).
Rumour of the Day:
*Talk of fresh acquisitions by Dolphin Capital Investors (DCI) being close.
Further news:
*Mike Ashley's shadow looms large over Sports Direct (SPD).
*Times MPC makes its first call in two years for Bank of England to cut rates.
*Costs derail Cable & Wireless (CW.) pension sell-off plan.
*Abbot Group (ABG) rises on hope of private equity bid.
*Talk of a potential bid for WH Smith (SMWH).
The Comment Column:
*Method in the market's madness, but only for now.
*Will banks be rehabilitated, or forced into rehab?
*Wild horses can't stop Stagecoach (SGC).
The Questor Column:
*Buy - Standard Chartered (STAN).
*Hold - David S Smith (SMDS).
*Buy - Ath Resources (ATH).
Further news:
*Bullish traders push up FTSE amid hopes of rate cuts.
*Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) feels the chill of exposure.
The Outlook Column:
*Crisis, what crisis? Net retail is booming.
*The spectre of repossessions (House prices).
*Where there's muck, there's brass (Biffa (BIFF)).
The Hamish McRae Column:
*The UK is caught in a vicious squeeze and hoping the BoE will cut some slack.
The Investment Column:
*Hold - David S Smith (SMDS).
*Sell - Moss Bros (MOSB).
*Risky buy – Probability (PBTY).
Further news:
*Glaxo (GSK) targets Danish group to save its bacon.
*Talk of imminent bid for Abbot Group (ABG).
*Olivant expected to lodge its bid proposal for Northern Rock (NRK) today.
*Gordon Brown says the Government will insist on repayment of the Northern Rock (NRK) loan.
*The Conservative party denies it is in talks with the Government over Northern Rock (NRK) nationalisation.
*Northern Rock (NRK) suitor JC Flowers mulls £723-million bid for Irish Nationwide.
*Xstrata (XTA) has made a £412-million cash offer for Resource Pacific.
*Scottish & Newcastle (SCTN) lawyers tell Carlsberg not to use private BBH data to help make bid.
*Crest Nicholson's house sales down by 15% since September.
*Last three bidders for Land Rover and Jaguar submit revised offer.
*Biffa (BIFF) rejects second 330p-a-share approach from Montague and HG Capital (HGI).
*BT (BT.A) to buy Singapore's Frontline in £70-million deal.
*Stagecoach (SGC) to sell Scottish coach services.
*Chinese feng shui expert, Tony Chan Chun-chuen is sizing up Robert Tchenguiz's 15% stake in Sci Entertainment (SEG).
*EMI (EMI) joins the suitors for Chrysalis (CHS).
*Heritage Underwriting (HUA) confirms it has received an offer approach but which significantly undervalues the company; has not entered talks with the potential offeror.
*CVC Capital is canvassing investors about plans to raise £7.9-billion buy-out fund next year.
*Metorex makes £99.8-million bid for Copper Resources (CRC).
*Bakery Services (BKE) sells two units to directors; raises investment funds in placing.
*Autonomy (AU.) signs significant licence deal with Cox Communications.
*Pubs 'n' Bars (PNB) buys Moorgate Taverns for about £9.28-million.
*Sophos, the IT security group, has been forced to pull its plans to list in London today.
SOME ITEMS THAT COULD INFLUENCE SHARE PRICES
*The Dow Jones closed up 196.23-points at 13444.96, the Nasdaq added 46.53-points to 2666.36, while the S&P put on 22.22-points to 1485.01.
*Pressure mounts on the Bank of England’s MPC to deliver a cut in interest rates today, after a clutch of weak data suggests the economy is slowing more abruptly than the Bank of England hopes.
*About 45,000 holders of secret offshore bank accounts have owned up to unpaid bills under the partial amnesty offered by HM Revenue & Custom.
*One-in-5 equity investors has fled the stock market in recent months for more cautious investments, according to Lloyds TSB Wealth management.
*Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) named as inquiry into sub-prime bonds gathers pace in America.
*Company default rates are forecast to rise at least fourfold next year.
*Suicide attack kills at least 13 on Kabul bus in Afghanistan.
*A gunman has killed 8 people and wounded a further 5 (2 critically) in a shopping Mall in Omaha.
*OPEC holds production output steady.
*US crude stocks fall by eight million barrels in week to 30th November.
*Soft landing of US economy could support dollar, according to Thomson research.
*US Institute of Supply Management non-manufacturing business index fell to 54.6 last month vs 54.8 expected.
*US October factory orders up 0.5% vs no change expected; ex transportation up 0.6%.
*US final third-quarter productivity up 6.3%; unit labour costs down 2%.
*US to freeze rates for sub-prime mortgages.
*Shares of specialist bond insurer MBIA plunge nearly 15% after ratings agency Moody's suggests that losses on mortgage securities could put the company's Triple-A status at risk.
*China to tighten monetary policy in attempt to cool economy.
*Apple is becoming an increasingly tempting target for malicious computer hackers, according to a new report.
Compiled in association with HB PLC and WH Ireland Ltd
