Barclays Share Discussion Threads

[purple sound] 24/5/2010 07:16

I am not the best trader in the world but I'm one of the special ones.

[homeboy35] 24/5/2010 07:12

Mornin' d t

[purple sound] 24/5/2010 07:03

I'm Long on Five Banks.

WOO HOO !

I'm hot !

[jon827] 23/5/2010 21:53

The market turmoil has made banks reluctant to lend to each other. The London interbank offered rate, or Libor, for three- month loans in dollars reached 0.497 percent on May 21, the highest since July 24.
Libor Forecast
Libor has been climbing as concern grows about the quality of banks' collateral amid the euro-region's financial crisis. Citigroup Global Markets Inc. strategist Neela Gollapudi in New York said in a report that the rate has the potential to reach 1 percent to 1.5 percent "over the next several months" after the U.S. Senate approved a financial-regulation overhaul that may increase banks' uncertainty about how they will be able to fund themselves.

[jon827] 23/5/2010 21:35

The banking bubble has burst. Imo commodities bubble is just beginning but right now it's going through it first major test... china

[smurfy2001] 23/5/2010 21:19

Jon827, there will always be bubbles and bursts. Nothing can prevent that, what goes up must come down eventually.

[kenbachelor] 23/5/2010 20:03

Hello Rainfall - We are going to make money this week, but we won't know how much until Friday.

[jon827] 23/5/2010 20:03

New financial rules might not prevent next crisis
Sweeping financial overhaul will change many rules, but loopholes could allow another crisis

[rainfall] 23/5/2010 19:05

hi folks what do we get this week .

[purple sound] 23/5/2010 17:16

Sold to the Man in the Chelsea Strip . . .

. . . Monty !

[purple sound] 23/5/2010 10:07

5p ?

Open Drawers !

[kenbachelor] 23/5/2010 09:46

Overzeal - I wouldn't bother. I think I'd ignore it until it's proved. And to think that I had such faith in my ability to make £1,000 a week without much effort, but I've found it's damned hard work and up to now I'm actually losing according to the figures I've posted (although the figures don't fully reflect the changes I made last weekend).

[isis] 23/5/2010 09:33

Five Bob and he'd take his drawers off!

[purple sound] 23/5/2010 09:33

Do I hear a Fiver ?

He's Whiter Than White !

[purple sound] 23/5/2010 09:32

£500 ?

Open Doors !

[purple sound] 23/5/2010 08:19

For £500,000 I can get you access to "ludlow3".

Any takers ?

[0verzeal] 23/5/2010 07:20

Ken,
I'll be monitoring Barclays Pivot Points and your System starting tomorrow.

[smurfy2001] 22/5/2010 14:52

Great stuff, l replotted my portfolio chart and thankfully it was not a new low on Friday.

Hopefully the worm is turning.

[gcom2] 22/5/2010 11:06

Billionaire investor Kenneth Fisher also sees the equity plunge as a buying opportunity. The chairman of Fisher Investments Inc., who oversees about $35 billion in Woodside, California, said the U.S. economic recovery will outweigh the debt crisis in Europe.

Gross domestic product in the world's biggest economy rose at a 3.2 percent annual rate in the first quarter. Consumer spending increased by the most in three years and business investment on new equipment advanced at a 13 percent pace. The economy will grow 3.2 percent to 3.7 percent this year, the Federal Reserve said on May 19.

"If GDP is rising, you don't have a recession," said Fisher. "We're getting the stock market correction that begins to let us put everything behind us and move on to the next leg. This is a bull market."

[capricious] 22/5/2010 09:37

From my reading...

- The US finance Bill that was passed is not as onerous as first feared
- The new coalition gov is moving back from totally bashing the banks (or at least unilaterally)
- The Euro bailout has been approved
- US/Jap show continued growth
- A further lowering of total annual UK deficit


Not enough together to make the markets happy, but risk appetite should return.

[libertine] 22/5/2010 07:36

From The Times May 22, 2010

Banks have more on their plates than politicians' plansKatherine Griffiths: Tempus Recommend? Most executives at Britain's banks were privately hoping Labour would be defeated in the election because they thought a new broom was needed to deal with the UK's debt mountain.

Yet the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats campaigned on policies - including splitting up retail and investment banks, capping cash bonuses at £2,500 and pushing ahead with a bank tax irrespective of what other countries do - that were far more hostile to the financial sector than Labour's proposals.

Billions have been wiped off banks' share prices in recent weeks. That is mainly down to fears of contagion from the Greek crisis, but also because investors are worried the Lib-Con coalition will follow up on its threats and impose swingeing reforms that could see Britain's banks materially disadvantaged compared to their foreign peers.

In fact, the new Government is already backing away from its pledge to act alone, probably after a few private chats with the Treasury, where civil servants remarked on how "bold" such a strategy might be.

But there is still plenty for investors in banks to fret about and little prospect of clarity in the short term.

There are two focal points. One is the G20 meeting in Toronto on June 26 and 27, when leaders will try to agree a new international regulatory framework based on the guidelines suggested by the International Monetary Fund in April. There is plenty of disagreement about the IMF's proposals, especially a possible tax on banks and how that cash would be used. Bankers believe conflicting political agendas and the turmoil in the markets mean little concrete progress will be made.

The other theme is Basel III, the new regime on capital and liquidity being formulated by Switzerland's Bank for International Settlements. The organisation was commissioned by the G20 to produce Basel III, so it may try to publish a document taking forward the debate for next month's Toronto meeting.

Basel III will have a more profound impact on banks than any other measures. Regulators hope it will eradicate the failings of the current regime, which has been criticised for accentuating the financial crisis.

Yet there are serious concerns about the new regime, which, if it sticks to its timetable, must be agreed internationally by the end of this year and implemented by 2012.

There could be a stampede by banks to try to raise money from shareholders, with industry estimates suggesting the top 100 banks would have to raise £2.9 trillion in long-term funding so they would have a "net stable funding ratio" of 100 per cent. This means they would need an amount of longer-term loans or deposits equal to their financing needs for 12 months, including off-balance-sheet commitments and anticipated securitisations.

These esoteric requirements will have a real impact on the economy, banks have said.

Mike Geoghegan, chief executive of HSBC, warned two weeks ago that if governments force through regulatory change too quickly, they run the risk of a double-dip recession.

Credit Suisse estimates that the total cost of the impending regulatory change will be €244 billion (£212 billion). The bank says that it (and many others) is factoring only about 15 per cent of this into current forecasts, which means regulatory change will be a big driver of share prices for a long time.

In this context, British banks are in better shape than many of their European counterparts. Because the crisis was greater here, they have been forced to clean up their balance sheets and raise more capital.

Britain's banking sector would actually have a surplus of capital once regulatory change is factored in, assuming banks are allowed to run a minimum tier 1 capital ratio of 7 per cent. But within that, there is a lot of variation. Lloyds Banking Group's surplus would only be €324 million, while HSBC would stand at €14.7 billion.

Lloyds, 41 per cent-owned by taxpayers, may well try to raise more money from shareholders in the next year and it is likely to get a good hearing as it continues to show a stronger than expected recovery from the financial crisis .

Royal Bank of Scotland, 84 per cent state-controlled, has a strong capital buffer thanks to the £45 billion of public funds that have been pumped in. It is also widely expected to tap shareholders as part of its plan to reduce the Government's stake.

Barclays may also boost its capital. In contrast to the privatisation stories at RBS and Lloyds, which have driven up their share prices in recent months, a Barclays rights issue would not be popular - a scenario reflected in the fact that it trades at about its tangible book value, a discount to rivals.

The market's ambivalence may make Barclays appear a bargain. The problem is that it is the most exposed of British banks to a clampdown on banks by American politicians.

HSBC and Standard Chartered are well capitalised and also more liquid than their UK-focused competitors, which should mean they come out better from the implementation of Basel III and other changes.

Neither bank is cheap. But Standard Chartered, in particular, which is a pure play on emerging markets, looks affordable compared with the ratings of Indian and Chinese banks.

[eisler] 22/5/2010 00:11

Cr@p - looks as if it is falling away - more of the same next week and the 250 everyone ranting about is on the cards by mid-June. What a disaster :-(

[smurfy2001] 21/5/2010 22:49

Hope so!!!

[saltaire111] 21/5/2010 21:04

Is this it? Is this the turning point?

Salty

[kenbachelor] 21/5/2010 20:23

Yes - I've just posted it in the header, but BCS still finished about 3.5p less than our close.