Friday Papers: tips and comment

Fri May 16, 2008 7:48am BST

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Comment on Barclays, BT, Henderson, Luminar, Invensys and Balfour Beatty and tips for Delek Global, Hampson, Faroe Petroleum and Lidco.

FT Lex Column:

* Eurozone economy -- the eurozone engine of the world economy, it may sound strange but it has more than a grain of truth

* Icahn vs Yahoo -- Carl Icahn, the activist investor, has launched a proxy fight against Yahoo. Does he also have any chance of forcing the internet group into the hands of Microsoft?

* Barclays' silence -- in response to a fragile balance sheet -and its global peers scrambling for capital - the UK bank has decided to do, er, nothing

* Parmalat warning -- few companies can make investment bankers wince purely at the mention of their name. Parmalat even prompts a desire to consult lawyers and compliance officers

* ResCap's bondholders -- the struggling mortgage business which is part of GMAC (owned by Cerberus and General Motors) is hoping its tenders will accept a haircut

* Blackstone's quarter -- given the sensitivity of Blackstone's numbers to credit conditions, equity markets and deal flow, it's a wonder analysts get close to the outcome.

Lombard (p.16):

* BT's Ben Verwaayen will be a hard act to follow -- Until the credit crunch, British banks were the envy of Europe -- Big Four's professional service firms' public potential

Other comment:

* Central bankers re-examine the hands-off approach (p.9)

* Small Talk: when the going gets tough, the innovative get going (Plethora Solutions (p.18)

* Fund Focus: Pacific Assets Trust (p.25)

* Talk of Persimmon predatory interest lifts Bovis Homes (p.38)

* Talk that RCG Group is set to buy a majority interest in Vast Base Technology (p.38)

THE TIMES

Tempus:

* Henderson no more than a hold -- BT Group a solid buy -- Buy Luminar

Business Editor:

* Ben Verwaayen waves goodbye from his starting point at BT -- DSG looks a tempting morsel -- Yahoo! stakes heading higher for Jerry Yang

Other comment:

* Willie Walsh faces bumpy ride over British Airways profit warning

* Talk of stakebuilding by overseas investor lifts Dermasalve Sciences

* Just Retirement a tiddler to watch

DAILY TELEGRAPH

Questor:

* Hold Vedanta Resources -- Buy Invensys

Comment:

* Barclays: John Varley made his point, now he must make his move -- Cracks in the wisdom of our inflation targeting -- Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah needs to oil the president a little

Other comment:

* Gossip that IntercontinentalExchange (ICE) is eyeing up ICAP

THE INDEPENDENT

Investment Column:

* Hold Balfour Beatty -- Sell Aer Lingus -- Hold Informa

Outlook:

* Barclays determined to do the right thing by shareholders as capital pressures mount -- Vodafone;s licence to print money -- Renewed bid rumours evident around Genus Group

THE GUARDIAN

Viewpoint:

* Barclays: John Varley may not be a charlie -- DSG International: Currys beef

Other comment

Interview Steve Easterbrook of McDonald's UK

DAILY MAIL

* Deloitte delight for British Airways

DAILY EXPRESS

* Gossips say Dermasalve may havea large order in the pipeline

INVESTORS CHRONICLE

Tips:

* Sell Phorm at £17.13 -- GTL Resources at 33.5p