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To: Johnny Canuck who wrote (45001)	9/29/2008 5:55:58 AM
From: Johnny Canuck	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 70927

4:56AM August British net mortgage lending plunges by William L. Watts LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Net mortgage lending to individuals in the United Kingdom plunged to 143 million pounds ($263.6 million)in August, the Bank of England reported Monday, the lowest since the statistical series began in 1993 and a steep drop from the downwardly revised 2.998 billion pounds seen in July and the 9.135 billion pounds seen in August 2007. Mortgage approvals also fell to a record low, totaling just 32,000. That's down from 33,000 approvals in July. 3:08AM European shares fall in early trading; banks decline (UK:BB, BE:000380118, UK:RBS, DE:514000) by Sarah Turner LONDON (MarketWatch) -- European shares fell on Monday morning, as investors weighed news that the U.S. has agreed details of a financial-sector rescue package with a bailout of Fortis (BE:000380118) and the nationalization of Bradford & Bingley (UK:BB). Royal Bank of Scotland (UK:RBS) shares fell 7.6%, Deutsche Bank (DE:514000) declined 2.9%, while Fortis shares rose 7.7% after falling heavily last week. Bradford & Bingley shares were suspended. The U.K. FTSE 100 index fell 1.1% to 5,033.43, the German DAX 30 index declined 1.2% to 5,992.05 and the French CAC-40 index lost 0.8% to 4,130.14. 2:57AM Bradford & Bingley nationalized, Abbey gets deposit business (UK:BB) by Simon Kennedy LONDON (MarketWatch) -- The U.K. Treasury on Monday confirmed Bradford & Bingley (UK:BB) is being nationalized after investors and lenders lost confidence in the bank. Bradford & Bingley's retail deposit business and branch network are being transferred to Banco Santander's (STD) Abbey division, while the remainder, including its mortgage and personal loan books, headquarters and treasury assets will be taken into public ownership. The government said it has put in place guarantee arrangements for six months to safeguard certain wholesale borrowings and deposits and added it will seek European Commission approval to extends those guarantees. It added branches and call centers will remain open as usual. 2:36AM Thomas Cook says on track to meet expectations (UK:TCG) by Sarah Turner LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Tour operator Thomas Cook Group (UK:TCG) said Monday that its current trading continues to be strong for Summer 2008 and it's on track to meet expectations for the current financial year. Winter 2008/2009 trading is in line with expectations across markets and particularly strong in the U.K. The company also confirmed it expects merger synergies to exceed 155 million pounds by fiscal 2009. 2:36AM Icap sees revenue up around 20% (UK:IAP) by Simon Kennedy LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Interdealer broker Icap (UK:IAP) said Monday that revenue for the six months ended Sept. 30 is expected to be around 20% ahead of the same period a year earlier. The group said the increase in electronic broking revenue was particularly strong, especially in foreign exchange. For the financial year ending March 31, the group expects adjusted pretax profit to be ahead of the previous year and added it could be "well ahead" if market development and exchange rate moves are favorable. 2:33AM Tui Travel says on track to meet fiscal-year expectations (UK:TT) by Sarah Turner LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Tui Travel (UK:TT) said that trading since Aug. 14 has progressed as anticipated. The company said it remains encouraged by current trading and believe that the flexibility in its business model gives it the ability to manage successfully through a challenging economic period. The board is confident the firm will meet its expectations for fiscal 2008 and 2009. Tui Travel also noted that Thomas Cook Group (UK:TCG) has withdrawn from discussions with Lufthansa and Tui Travel regarding a potential merger of Condor, Germanwings and TUIfly. Tui Travel said that is continues to explore alternatives for its German airline operation. 2:29AM Man Group sees earnings, funds under management declining (UK:EMG) by Simon Kennedy LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Hedge fund manager Man Group (UK:EMG) said Monday that its funds under management fell around 6% in the six months to the end of September due to the turbulent markets as well as the impact of the strengthening dollar. The group said earnings per share for the period will be down around 5% from a year earlier. Net management fee income will be roughly flat from the prior year period and performance fee income will be down around 40% due to a lower contribution from its AHL fund. Sales in the period were up around 25% from a year earlier at $10 billion and net inflows were up 14% at $4.1 billion.