He also said the Labour Party was finished. Not a bad speech. FTSE looks set to fall below the psychologically important 5000 level....
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2008
+++ TORIES BREAK THROUGH TO 52% +++
+++ FTSE CLOSES BELOW 5000 +++
MORI tomorrow will have a poll putting the Tories on 52%, Labour on 24% and the Lib Dems on 12%. Total political meltdown.
The FTSE has crashed to new lows and closed at 4912, well below the psychologically important 5000 level. Economic meltdown.
UPDATE : According to Electoral Calculus, this would give the Tories 493 seats, Labour 121 and leave the Lib Dems on 8 seats.HBOS Collapse : Jonah Brown Was There Again
The refurbished Bank of Scotland head office on "The Mound", was formally opened by the Chancellor, Gordon Brown, at a gala reception on September 7, 2006.
Comrade Mason Replies
Guido - I should probably have said the value of its shares fell 48% in after market pricing, or some similar gobbledygook. As your other commenters point out the issue of whether there is a futures"market" is philosophically moot. Unfortunately the words "futures market" were in a piece of paper printed off into my hands literally as the 5-strong team of makeup women and masseurs was prepping me for my live appearance and seconds before we went on air. The words "futures market" entered my brain while I was puzzling whether the 48% fall really mattered in such an illiquid market. But hey, guys: if you think I sound like a hysterical Trot, you should listen to McCain!Clegg Speech : Tax Cuts and Social Justice
Who Told Peston?
If as many suspect the Treasury panicked and tipped Peston off about the HBOS bid in order to stem the collapse we could be looking at serious consequences.
This is a clear breach of the Take Over Code:2.2 WHEN AN ANNOUNCEMENT IS REQUIRED
An announcement is required:—
when, before an approach has been made, the offeree company is the subject of rumour and speculation or there is an untoward movement in its share price and there are reasonable grounds for concluding that it is the potential offeror’s actions (whether through inadequate security or otherwise) which have led to the situation
UPDATE : Informed City co-conspirator emailsWhat is more significant is the fact that at least one city law firm is in the early stages of rounding up plaintiffs among the fund community for an action relating to the price manipulation of HBOS shares this morning.
Peston admitted "over-egging" the price while the panel stood by and the companies made no announcements. No suspension of trading either.
Funds who sustained losses stopping out short positions entered at around 180 - the key level that broke down on volume over the past couple of days, will be placing the blame fairly and squarely with the entirely false idea given cynically to retail punters by the bbc that the price would be set around the 300p level.
This is going to get very interesting indeed.
UPDATE II : Have just been reminded that Peston wrote Brown's biographyBrown's Britain.+++ HBOS Collapses 38% +++
UPDATE II : Robert Peston's reporting has been, errm, interesting. He said earlier this morning that Lloyds was looking at paying £3 for HBOS. This seems suspiciously toppy.
Peston should have known that the disastrous HBOS rights issue in late July was priced at £2.75. The market shunned it with the underwriters getting stuffed and left holding two-thirds of the £4 billion offering. So why would Lloyds want to pay more than the price which was shunned two months ago when conditions have deteriorated? Doh! He now says it will be nearer to £2.
Peston needs to be careful that he doesn't get accused of creating a false market. There are laws and a Stock Exchange Regulatory New Service for market moving news!+++ FTSE Drops Despite AIG $85 Billion Bail-Out +++
Pensions Plundered, Stocks Slumping, Gordon's Dead-Hand
In the ten years prior to May 1997 before Gordon got his hands on the levers of the economy the FTSE rose from less than 2000 to more 4000. After a decade of Gordon's stewardship of the economy the stock market has gone nowhere. Pensions have had no capital gains, what gains they have made have been taxed. During his time we have had the first run on a bank for a century. As the FTSE teeters at the 5000 level those who are retiring soon have a terrible future ahead, whereas at one time the British private pension system was a model for other countries. UK stocks under performance compared to other countries is partly due to Gordon looting pension funds to pay for current spending.
Wednesday, 17 September 2008
After the kerfuffle about the mixed up market report last night this (presumably genuine) communication from Newsnight's business reporter and trade union leader has come in:
Incidentally, that last sentence is an interesting point, Guido will only note that the lead piece on the show tonight is scheduled to be "Does capitalism still work?" Producers with a sense of humour...
... when, following an approach to the offeree company, the offeree company is the subject of rumour and speculation or there is an untoward movement in its share price;
It is doubly serious, because he said the price would be near £3, then said it would be nearer £2, millions have changed hands on the basis of false information...
UPDATE : Peston now says on his blog "I am hearing that this deal has been negotiated at a very high pay grade level, with the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, talking to Sir Victor Blank, chairman of Lloyds TSB, about how helpful it would be if Sir Victor could bring himself to end the uncertainty hanging over HBOS by buying it." He also says the deal is an all share deal which, wait for it, will be worth near £3!
UPDATE : Rumours circulating that Lloyds are looking to buy HBOS on the cheap. HBOS slumped 51% at one point, now bounced to off 19%. FSA has released a statement saying HBOS is well capitalised...
Some commentators (who should know better) warn that in these times of economic turbulence we should keep Gordon at the helm. It is a desperate line seized on and spun by his few remaining supporters. Who, they ask, knows the economy better than Gordon Brown? This is repeated so often you would think it a truism. Fraser Nelson pointed out some time ago that all Gordon knows about the economy is how to tax it. Look at how the stock market has performed during his chancellorship. Guido has pointed out before how much better other G7 stock markets have performed in comparison. Gordon's plundering of our retirement pensions to fund his profligacy has sucked capital out of pensions to pour into his social engineering.
Posts
