Ouch! How things can change...

[Deleted User]

If you take a long term view, timing is less important.

Dithering_Dad

woo! What a ride! I've just sold again on Alliance & Leicester after it jumped mightily. I just hope I bailed at the top of the curve and not the middle!

Keep your fingers crossed that it drops towards the end of the day so that I can buy back in.

Wow, I'm a share dealing wonder!

aspiration_2

Yant1 wrote: »

Lets compare it to none miners -
Patientline - 147%
Rank (casino + bingo) - 88%
Barclays bank - 97.5%
RBS - 94.78
BP - 61.1%
ICI - 110%
Marks and spencers - 56%
Tesco - 36.53%

Again my question is directed to the gold_mine of information Yant1, from whom I have learnt a lot.

If all banks and companies are in debt where is the money to be lent coming from ? Are highly geared company shares to be avoided?

Thanks

[Deleted User]

Banks the money either comes from their customers or other banks via the markets. As banks dictate the rates they have the upper hand ie they pick up one rate and then pass a higher rate to the customer simply taking a cut in between.

Not all highly geared companies are to be avoided it depends how profitable they are and if they can keep the profits up in the long term. But in the case of patientline - that is to definatly be avoided the stockholders may lose everything.

Case by case basis really.

You also need to have confidence in what you are buying as the markets are manipulated to benefit large powerful players. Research with a capital R.

jamesd

Dithering Dad, the interesting bit re A&L is the story in the FT today about banks but not building societies having dramatically cut back their lending and A&L warning that it might not be able to refinance its mortgage loans next year. It looks as though the banks in general are hoarding cash for year end so they don't run short, now Northern Rock has demonstrated what will happen if they are found to seek help from a central bank.

Looks like a good time to be getting a mortgage from a building society, not so good from the banks since I suppose that they are being more selective about who they will lend to if they don't have the cash to do all the loans they want to do.

Banks are still lending, though, including A&L, and it's a safe bet that they wouldn't be if they were truly in a crunch.