EUROPEANS -- We're rich ... well
richer. State-backed bank Lloyds Banking Group is
back in the black. Despite putting aside a further £375m to pay for costs
associated with payment protection insurance mis-selling the bank made a £288m
profit in the first quarter. Arguably even better news comes from loan
impairments which much to the surprise of many commentators are down. However
as I report this morning Lloyds’ problems could be ahead of it. If, as expected
Moody’s downgrades the bank next month, it could knock those nascent profits by
up to 16pc. Man Group is one of a number of companies holding AGMs today.
The investment house is under pressure after a stalling share price and poor
performance. The company is talking about “reduced net outflows” of funds this
morning. In other words things are still getting worse, just more slowly.
Xstrata is holding its annual shareholder meeting. Expect an
update on plans to merge with Glencore. National Express, Reckitt
Benckiser and Rentokil have all updated the market.
Imperial Tobacco has revealed it is selling fewer cigarettes
but making more money. Total “stick” sales are down 4pc to 159.1bn while profit
before tax is up £49m at £1.2bn.
Middle East airline Etihad has revealed it has taken a near
3pc stake in Aer Lingus as part of the airlines’ discussions on
codesharing. Lloyd’s of London has also put a management statement with net
assets on the rise.
3 comments:
The euro pols established the euro for one purpose only – to pull off a power grab they knew they could never achieve by democratic means. Only two referendums were ever held on adopting the euro, in Denmark and Sweden, and both countries rejected it. All subsequent referendums were cancelled.
The only countries, out of twenty five, that ratified the original European constitution with a referendum were Spain (on a turnout of 43%), and Luxembourg (more of a tax dodge than a country). France and the Netherlands both rejected it. Again, all subsequent referendums were cancelled.
The only country in the entire EU allowed to hold a referendum on the Lisbon treaty was Ireland, and they rejected it on the first vote. Portugal was talked out of holding a referendum by Gordon Brown, the man who criminally denied us our own referendum. The country whose capital city gave it's name to the EU Constitution Mark II cancelled it's own referendum on the grounds that it would "jeopardize the legitimacy" of the ratification process.
The EUSSR is an illegitimate, undemocratic, Supreme Soviet, foisted on a massively sceptical public by a bunch of totalitarian Kommissars who are now on the verge of destroying what was once a prosperous free Europe of sovereign nation states.
These Kommissars have been propped up by a long line of traitorous governments like our own who have relentlessly steamrollered us into this anti-democratic monstrosity without ever bothering to obtain a democratic mandate. The ordinary people of Europe, not one of whom voted for the euro, are now being sacrificed by the EU political elites in a desperate fight to save their unsavable grandiose political project.
The best thing Canada can do for Europe is to veto any attempt by the IMF to intervene in the euros inevitable collapse.
Vote Ukip.
A friend of mine was in France recently. He said French farmers get a subsidy for growing low value crops. So their's a glut of the low value crops because more are grown!
They try & grow high value crops in the centre of each field where it can't be seen. So guess why those crops are high value?
Because the Eurocrats deter farmers from growing them!
What is all the point of this?
It just means a surplus's of some crops & shortages & high prices of others.
Meddling useless Eureaucrats are a curse.
Let the market forces prevail & there'd be no problem.
Also the Euro might not need bailing out.
Give us a referendum Mr Scameron.
Stop ruling the country with three whips.
You've lost my vote to UKIP
French far-right leader Marine Le Pen has refused to back either President Nicolas Sarkozy or Socialist Francois Hollande in Sunday's run-off.
She vowed to cast a blank ballot and told supporters of her National Front to vote with their conscience.
Although it was expected, analysts say the move deals a further blow to Mr Sarkozy's re-election chances.
He needs the majority of the 6.4m voters who voted National Front in the first round to back him in the second.
The latest opinion polls suggest Mr Hollande has a six to 10 point lead over President Sarkozy of the centre-right UMP party.
The two will go head-to-head in the sole televised election debate on Wednesday
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