Wednesday newspaper round-up: Ukraine, House prices, Crude prices
ASOS
358.20p
16:40 23/04/24
FTSE AIM 100
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17:14 23/04/24
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17:14 23/04/24
FTSE AIM All-Share
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17:14 23/04/24
General Retailers
3,912.01
16:59 23/04/24
Face-to-face talks between the Russian and Ukrainian presidents failed to produce a breakthrough for ending the conflict over eastern Ukraine, as Kiev released videos of captured Russian soldiers and rebels pushed toward a government-held city. The one-on-one session, which Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko described as "tough and complex," ended early Wednesday after a day of talks on the crisis in the Belarusian capital of Minsk. - The Wall Street Journal Europe
House prices in Britain will be more than 25% higher in five years, with London finally being overtaken by other parts of the country. Savills, the property company, has forecast that house prices will jump by 9.5% this year across the UK, up from its original estimate of 6.5%, with the property market having "exceeded all expectations". - The Times
Oil superpowers Saudi Arabia and Iran have warned that recent declines in crude prices will be short lived. It is an ominous sign for motorists in the UK who were hoping that recent declines in the cost of a gallon of petrol would be sustained. Iran's Petroleum Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said on Tuesday that the current weakness in oil prices, which have resulted in Brent crude falling by almost 13% to a low around $100 per barrel, will soon be reversed. - The Daily Telegraph
Scotland's remaining shipbuilding industry was dealt a severe blow on Friday when the country's last commercial shipyard went into administration with the loss of about 70 jobs on the river Clyde. After more than a century in business, staff at Ferguson Shipbuilders arrived for work at Port Glasgow, Inverclyde, in the morning to be told most of the 77-strong workforce were being made redundant with immediate effect. - The Guardian
A victory for the Yes campaign in next month's referendum on Scottish independence could spark a financial crunch at some of Britain's biggest corporate pension schemes. Analysts at JP Morgan Cazenove told clients yesterday that they had identified 22 companies that could be forced to top up their retirement funds or split them into two if Scots voted to break away from the Union in the poll on 18 September. - The Times
Shares of online fashion emporium ASOS, which has clothed Prime Minister's wife Samantha Cameron and superstar singer Rihanna, were suddenly in vogue again as takeover rumours swep sparsely populated dealing rooms. They jumped 166p or 7.6% to 2348p on vague talk of a US cash bid in the region of £50 a share. Dealers heard whispers that its major 27.4% shareholder Bestseller, the Danish privately-held family-owned clothing firm, has been approached for its stake by a US buyer. - The Daily Mail
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