News

Leading fund managers have staked their reputations, and their clients' money, on a sustained UK economic recovery by upping their holdings of shares and reducing their positions in bonds in the past month.

US stocks slumped to their worst August in nine years, as investors retreated on fears for the US economy.

More than a tenth of the 7,380 banks in the US remain at risk of failure despite the sector posting strong profit growth during the second quarter.

Hargreaves Lansdown profits increased 18% to more than £86m in the year to 30 June as net business inflows soared.

Neptune and Martin Currie are the latest asset managers to be linked with troubled group Gartmore, with rumours suggesting the pair have expressed an interest in acquiring a stake in the firm.

The protection market has started to recover over the last year, but it is being propped up by resurging critical illness sales, according to FSA figures.

The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has revealed that consumers and businesses are digging their heels in over disputes forcing it to make a greater number of decisions.

The FTSE 100 moved slightly lower in afternoon trading as double-dip fears persisted on the back of negative housing market data.

Société Générale Corporate and Investment Banking (SGCIB) has appointed John Craven as head of professional client relationships for exchange-traded products (ETPs).

Westfield Health will absorb January's 1% insurance premium tax (IPT) rise instead of passing it on to policyholders.