|
TODAY’S
FAYRE – Wednesday, 12th December 2012
|
“Fear death? – to feel the fog in my throat,
The mist in my face,
When the snows begin, and the blasts denote
I am nearing the place,
The power of the night, the press of the storm,
The post of the foe;
Where he stands, the Arch Fear in a visible form;
Yet the strong man must go:
For the journey is done and the summit attained,
And the barriers fall,
Though a battle's to fight ere the guerdon be gained,
The reward of it all.
I was ever a fighter, so---one fight more,
The best and the last!
I would hate that Death bandaged my eyes, and forbore,
And made me creep past.
No! let me taste the whole of it, fare like my peers,
The heroes of old,
Bear the brunt, in a minute pay glad life's arrears
Of pain, darkness and cold.
For sudden the worst turns the best to the brave.
The black minute's at end,
And the elements' rage, the fiend voices that rave,
Shall dwindle, shall blend,
Shall change, shall become first a peace out of pain.
Then a light, then thy breast,
O thou soul of my soul! I shall clasp thee again,
And with God be the rest!”
Robert Browning – poet – 1812-1889
Sir Terry
Leahy, the 56 year old former CEO of Tesco, considered by many to be the doyen
of retail in the UK during his 14 year tenure, was lunching at The Goring Hotel
yesterday. He looked sprightly fit, sharp and as enthusiastic as
ever. Mind you the lunch was extremely frugal and abstemious! Now
chairing the on-line retail group The Hut Group, one wonders if that challenge
is enough on its own to titillate his ambitions.
I was
talking to two well-connected Americans yesterday, as to who might become
Secretary of State replacing the admirable Hillary Rodham-Clinton. All
they could come up with were John Kerry and Susan Rice,
the current United States Ambassador to the
United Nations! Well she certainly eats nails for breakfast and spits rust out, hardly
the ingredients for diplomacy! Surely there must be other candidates?
The
debate on Europe - ‘IN OR OUT!” - is gathering momentum. Boris Johnson
and Dr Liam Fox have now entered the debate from the wings! Why not come and
participate in the CANTOR INDEX sponsored debate at the Bloomberg Auditorium on
Wednesday 9th January 2013? Have your say and pit your wits against
NIGEL FARAGE, PETER OBORNE, DAVID BLUNKETT and SIR MENZIES CAMPBELL! - "Should
the UK leave the EU
Markets
pottered quietly about their business yesterday, most of them making a little
though unspectacular progress as we head towards Yuletide in very quiet trading
conditions. The ZEW confidence index helped the cause and nothing adverse
came out of the first day of the FOMC meeting. More QE, perhaps mortgage
backed bonds rather than Treasuries will probably be the recommended
facilities. The FTSE 100 closed at 5924 – up 3 points – just 21 points
short of the close in 2011. That’s a pretty remarkable achievement against a
background of EU sovereign debt turmoil, falling growth across the world,
China, India and Brazil very much included and with the distinct prospect that
the UK and the EU could fall in to recession next year. Of course 70% of
the FTSE 100’s earnings are dollar related and have little bearing on UK’s
parochial economic activity.
Talking
of performing sectors; Look no further than the banking sector for gains this
year! – RBS 37%, HSBC 28%, Lloyds Banking Group 72%, Barclays 38% and Standard
Chartered Bank just the 2.5%. Against a background of LIBOR manipulation,
Miss-selling of PPI and IRSs and money laundering rallies of this magnitude is
incredible – even though the start was from a very low base. It just goes
to show how robust the banks are in the current climate and so long as the QE
rug is not pulled from under them and interest rates remain low, the outlook
for some, according to our clients looks rosy – particularly strong ‘heads-ups’
for HSBC and Barclays. Of course draconian capital requirements could put
the kibosh on progress if investors believe they are being discriminated
against. Governor Elect Mark Carney has a refreshing outlook towards inflation in
the current financial climate – ‘leave it in the in-tray and concentrate on
expansive monetary policies.’
Could
we get of HSBC’s back please? These transgressions took place between 2001 and
2008. There is a new management broom in place – Lord Green and Michael
Geogeghan are pursuing other interests and Douglas Flint and Stuart Gulliver
are as tough as teak and will take no prisoners, when the guidelines are
breached! Steps have been implemented and introduced to monitor proper
regulatory controls. Abject apologies have been made and the US JOJ has
metaphorically rubbed HSBC’s nose in the poop; so its time to move on, the
requisite fines having been paid. HSBC is a very well balanced operation
with a strong global business platform. It is thought that most of the
financial skeletons are now out of the closet! So onwards and upwards! I
am amazed to keep hearing or reading in the press the pugilistic Terry Smith of
Tullett Prebon, who persists in ‘slagging’ his customers off. Either he’s
stupid and I know he isn’t; or he is arrogance personified!
As for
the Northern Rock debacle, where £270 million could be shared with 152k
customers who took out loans and mortgages with incorrect and therefore invalid
documentation; now that is a disgrace and heads should role to make sure that
there is no repetition of what should be a very simple though tiresome piece of
administration.
The EU
meets again today to talk about a banking Union. Even though Chancellor
Merkel believes that nothing will transpire at this session, George Osborne
needs to make it crystal clear that the UK banking sector will yield absolutely
nothing to the EU. London has NOTHING to benefit from this union. London
has regrouped and is not far short from selecting another gear on its road back
as the financially pre-eminent centre.
News in
brief
Virgin
Airlines sells 49% to Delta Airlines for £224 million.
Diageo
draws stumps on its quest to buy the tequila titan Jose Cuervo for £2 billion.
Jaguar
Rover will be opening a plant in Saudi Arabia.
Indian
factory orders rose 8.2% last month.
Spread bets are high risk
products; you need to deposit only a small percentage of the value of the bet
that rides. However your losses may substantially exceed that
deposit. You may also be required to make additional deposits at short
notice to maintain your bets. Spread bets are not suitable for all
customers. Before betting, you should ensure you fully understand the
risks and seek independent financial advice if necessary.
Cantor Index makes no representation and gives no
warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this
email. Cantor Index, its officers, employees, affiliates and shareholders
shall not be liable to any person in any way whatsoever for any losses, costs
or claims howsoever arising from any inaccuracies or omissions in the
information contained in this email or any reliance on that information.
The information contained in this email is not
intended to form the basis of any investment decision and should not be
considered a recommendation by Cantor Index or any other person in relation to
any or the companies, stock, commodities, currencies or other markets referred
to in this email. The information contained in this email has not been
verified by Cantor Index and Cantor Index undertakes no obligation to provide
recipients of this email with any additional information or any update to or
correction of the information contained in this email.
Any views or opinions expressed in this email are the
personal views and opinions of David Buik and do not necessarily represent the
views, opinions or position of Cantor Index.
Any spread prices contained in this
email are prices of Cantor Index, unless otherwise indicated, and are
indicative and
for guidance only. Whilst Cantor Index exercises all due care and skill
in the preparation of its prices, due to the nature and speed of market
movements, the prices indicated may not necessarily be the prices at which
customers of Cantor Index will be able to trade.
This email was sent to you by Cantor Index Limited
("Cantor Index"), One Churchill Place, Canary Wharf, London, E14 5RD.
Cantor Index is a registered UK Company (company no. 03489923). Cantor Index is
authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority ("FSA")
and appears on the FSA register under no. 194414.
This e-mail, including its contents and attachments,
if any, are confidential. If you are not the named recipient please notify the
sender and immediately delete it. You may not disseminate, distribute, or
forward this e-mail or disclose its contents to anybody else. Copyright and any
other intellectual property rights in its contents are the sole property of
Cantor Index.
Although we routinely screen for viruses, addressees
should check this e-mail and any attachments for viruses. We make no
representation or warranty as to the absence of viruses in this e-mail or any
attachments.
