The Lex Column:
*Wide of the mark - US banks seem to have taken the brunt of the sub-prime pain so far. Since the start of September, US bank stocks have performed more than twice as badly as European peers.
*Leveraged loans - Distressed debt funds are circling Wall Street's unsold leveraged loans - about $168 billion worth. The prospect of getting these shifted at a decent price soon looks dismal.
*SEC/proxy voting - The US Chamber of Commerce wants the Securities and Exchange Commission to act this week to prevent activist investors clogging up annual shareholder proxy votes.
The Tony Jackson on Monday Column:
*Turning the screw back to 1973 – or perhaps further.
Interview:
*Wulf Bernotat, head of Eon.
Face to Face:
*Michael de Picciotto, head of Union Bancaire Privee.
Further news:
*Warning of recession in US as investors fear new credit turmoil.
*US tops London in IPO race.
*Radio eyes gold at end of digital spectrum.
The Economic View Column:
*‘R’ word makes the leftovers harder to digest.
Business Big Shot:
*Ozwald Boateng.
Monday Manifesto:
*Sir Terry Leahy.
Further news:
*Sir Terry Leahy spells out Tesco's massive global ambitions.
*Seaside towns favoured by City types feel the chill of a bonus slump.
*Shed Media to adopt maker of BBC's Who Do You Think You Are?
*Knight Vinke unimpressed by HSBC's performance in China.
The Stephen King Column:
*When banking is in crisis, no one wants to be parted from their cash.
The Small Talk Column:
*Get in with the Renold chain gang.
*Disgrace at Erinaceous.
*Pure Wafer aims to tap deep water reserves.
Further news:
*Fund managers raise exit penalties to prevent commercial property collapse.
*Retailers plan discounts to save Christmas sales from a downturn.
*Take two: It's crunch time (again) at Barclays.
*New York poised to overtake London in IPO race.
*A California hedge fund Lahde Capital has made a more than 1000% return this year by betting against US sub-prime home loans.
*Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group has emerged as the preferred bidder for Northern Rock, as the auction for the stricken mortgage bank lender reaches its climax. The Branson consortium's bid is considered more attractive by the Treasury because it would repay more than £10-billion and treat the government as an equal creditor.
*Mitchells & Butlers and Punch Taverns deny there had been merger talks in spite of reports of M&B shareholders approaching senior management at Punch.
*Rio Tinto to launch robust defence against BHP Billiton.
*Olympic Dam project threatens BHP (The Times).
*Asda's sales rise by almost £1-billion.
*Caja Madrid is expected to become the biggest shareholders in Iberia and foil takeover plans by BA/TPG consortium.
*Rank Group has rejected a proposal from Harrah's Entertainment that would have seen the US gambling giant taking a 28% stake.
*Suffolk Life has become the latest life assurer to receive a number of takeover approaches.
*Cambridge Place Investment Management is planning to launch a new hedge fund.
SOME ITEMS THAT COULD INFLUENCE SHARE PRICES
*Former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif vows to increase pressure on Musharraf.
*Labour admits that secret donations from a supporter may be illegal.
*Alistair Darling faces grilling from MP’s over changes to capital gains tax.
*Today, Prime Minister Gordon Brown, will tell business he will slash lengthy planning inquiries to speed up construction of key infrastructure projects.
*Senior business leaders have called for new taxes and regulations to tackle climate change.
*An elite of wealthy foreigners living in Great Britain face paying billions of pounds in capital gains tax on UK-based assets under far-reaching legislation being drawn up by the Treasury.
*The City is now betting on UK house prices falling by 7.5% next year through new tradeable derivatives contracts.
*House prices in Great Britain tumble at their fastest rate since 2005, according to Hometrack.
*The average Briton is now £33,000 in debt, according to independent report.
*Personal insolvencies could start rising next year as higher mortgage payments cause strain on over indebted consumers, according to a report.
*Investors fear the financial system is moving into new credit turmoil, which could create further losses for financial institutions and potentially hurt sentiment in the 'real' economy.
*Ratings agencies Standard and Poor's and Moody's are among 49 companies which have become embroiled in legal action in the wake of the credit crisis.
*US retailers had a robust start to the holiday sh0pping season, according to results from a national research group, but analysts warn that a sales surge was no guarantee for the rest of the season.
*Global growth to stall in 2008, according to the Centre for Economic and Business Research.
Compiled in association with HB PLC and WH Ireland Ltd
