Barclays shrugs off UK weakness
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BARCLAYS, Britain&#39;s third-biggest bank, said that its full year profits would come in as expected, although costs have surged ahead of income because of acquisitions, labour costs and regulatory expenses.
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The pound has stayed on the back foot as markets reevaluated rate expectations following the Bank of England's decision earlier this week to hold rates at 5.25 percent.
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Top UK banks could report combined annual profits of about Â£38bn despite worries about exposure to bad debts.
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John Varley, the new chief executive of Barclays, said on Thursday that the UKâs third largest bank remains on target to deliver double-digit growth in pre-tax profits this year.
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Barclays, the nation's third-biggest bank, has said that net profit surged by 33 percent to a record 4.571 billion pounds in 2006, lifted by its investment banking arm.
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A buoyant hotel sector helped the FTSE 100 maintain its dizzying ascent Wednesday as investors shrugged off the likelihood of a widely-expected hike in interest rates by the Bank of England.
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Sterling picked up slightly from earlier levels but remained on the weak side, with analysts now confident that the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee will not raise interest rates when it meets next week.
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European shares traded sideways on Wednesday but banks were a bright spot as Britain&#39;s HBOS rallied on relief it would not be wading into a bidding war for domestic peer Abbey.
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The Bank of England held a key interest rate steady at 5.25 percent on Thursday.
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The Bank of England has held its key interest rate at 4.75 percent, opting against a further rise after last month's surprise quarter-point increase.
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UK blue chips closed higher, with the FTSE 100 going through the 6,000 barrier briefly, helped by a bullish conference call at Barclays prompting a turnaround in the banking sector, and a strong start on Wall Street.
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Banking giant UBS is cautious over prospects for the rest of the year after a lull in trading hurt its third-quarter profit, despite a strong showing by its blockbuster wealth management operation.
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The pound was stable in early afternoon trading after weaker-than-expected retail sales data.
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Britain is in a strong position to withstand the global turmoil in financial markets, a spokesman for Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Tuesday.
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London equities were little changed in opening trade on Wednesday as lingering strength in oil and mining stocks helped counter weakness in banking and pharmaceutical stocks.
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Barclays, the third-biggest British bank, has said that net profit surged by 33 percent to a record 4.571 billion pounds (6.782 billion euros, 8.906 billion dollars) in 2006, lifted by its investment banking arm.
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London equities fell on Tuesday after news of increased full-year writedowns at Barclays (NYSE:BCS) took the shine off banking stocks. There was further pressure in the sector after surprise news of fresh $2.85bn losses at Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS).