Markets live chat transcript for the chat ending at 12:05 on 24 Jan 2008. Participants in this chat were: Paul Murphy (PM) Neil Hume (NH)
PM: We’re on!
PM: Welcome to Markets Live – FT Alphaville’s daily markets chat.
PM: Neil Hume is with me. Raring to go.
PM: But look — Neil has just got the SocGen internal email
PM: I’m going to put that up on the Alphaville home page — so bear with us a mo
NH: apologies for the site being so SLOW
NH: we are getting huge traffic this morning
NH: loads of people want to see this letter from the Chairman of Soc Gen
NH: Daniel Bouton
NH: and here it is
NH: check out the last par
NH: lovely
NH: The Chairman
Dear Sir, Dear Madam,
At the start of the week, Société Générale was getting ready to announce pre-tax income in excess of 5.5 billion euros for 2007 despite the significant cost of the financial market crisis, thereby proving the Group’s capacity to absorb the very serious crisis. It was against this backdrop of extreme volatility that you are aware of that a fraud of an unprecedented size was uncovered last weekend, committed by a trader in our equity division. Our priority was to cut off the colossal position that he had created, and concealed, as quickly as practicable.
We informed the Bank of France, the AMF, our statutory auditors and the Audit Committee of Société Générale as soon as we became aware of the fraud. The position had to be unwound in very difficult market conditions this week. The result was a sizeable loss.
The trader responsible for the fraud was immediately suspended. He will leave the Group, along with the individuals in charge of his supervision.
The combined impact of the financial crisis and the exceptional fraud will, nevertheless, enable the Group to generate net income of 700 million euros for the full year.
Between Sunday January 20th and Wednesday January 23rd, a recapitalisation operation of 5.5 billion euros was put in place. In three days, two large international banks, J.P. MORGAN and MORGAN STANLEY agreed to guarantee the operation, which reflects Société Générale’s strength. This recapitalisation will keep shareholders’ equity at the same levels as the world’s best banks. It will help us continue our development in keeping with the excellent performance of previous years.
I am very sorry to have to announce this extremely bad news to you. I am fully aware of the impact that it may have on our company’s image and on yourselves and I present my sincere regrets, on behalf of all the members of the COMEX.
We will triumph over this twofold crisis, the like of which has never been seen before, using the qualities which we have established in recent years and all of your individual talents, which are greatly appreciated. As a result, I remain confident in Société Générale’s prospects and in its capacity to generate profitable growth which I am sure you share with me.
The Board renewed its confidence in me and asked me to continue my mandate. You can count on me, as I know I can count on you, to get through this difficult period.
Daniel Bouton
PM: We should say a big THANK YOU to the person who sent that to us
NH: lots in there
NH: seems is was a real crisis at Soc Gen earlier this week
PM: But let’s get one thing straight here
PM: We love the French.
PM: We love France. Beautiful people. Food. Design.
PM: It is probably the greatest civilisation the world has seen.
PM: Except the financial bit.
PM: Oh, and the music. French music is the worst on the planet.
PM: 
PM: WE WILL COME BACK TO cROCKgEN
PM: Come back to Soc Gen
PM: We ahve to go straight to this market spike
PM: What is going on Neil
NH: I have no idea
NH: but the market is flying
PM: 
Footsie
NH: now up 250 points
PM: Put on something like a 100 points since we came on air
NH: amazing
NH: and the bears are being squeezed big time
PM: And there is of course the big debate over how much this reflects the removed of a MASSIVE Socgen over hang
NH: CrockGen
PM: We should quickly say there has never been any suggestion of wrongdoing at Northern Rock, the poor victim of adverse conditions in the money markets.
NH: Whereas at ShockGen – well — EUR5bn has been lost to a rogue trader.
PM: So far unnamed. Details so far very vague.
PM: Yep, but Helen is live blogging the media conference call –which I should say is an absolute hoot.
NH: No one believes the story coming out of SocGen – that one loan individual managed to evade all the controls for two years.
PM: Just don’t believe it.
NH: People point out that the underlying positions must be something north of 20bn euros – possibly as much as 40bn
PM: People saying – how about the profit and loss account controls – how did he evade those.
PM: How about position reporting?
PM: How about regulatory filings?
PM: How about the bank’s general risk management systems?
PM: And this is before we get to things like management accounts, auditors etc etc etc etc
PM: And of course the big discussion point is how this has affected markets across Europe this week.
NH: Well there is consensus that this is the explanation for Europe decoupling from the US – that’s why we tanked on Monday when the US was closed and then failed to recover immediately.
NH: But the key question is:
NH: Were price falls actually caused by SocGen liquidating their positions OR
NH: Did the fact that SocGen had a bomb ticking leak??
PM: ie – have a bunch of insiders made a packet on this.
PM: Stacy-Marie was round earlier talking about the CDS market. Apparently there were some very strange trades in CDS on Friday afternoon in Europe – well before the Ambac stuff came out in the States.
PM: Some people in the credit markets are saying there is a link. But we don’t really have clarity on anything as yet.
PM: What we have got tho is the mother of all relief rallies!
NH: yep we have
NH: This is at least partly from a sense that an overhang has been removed. The Socgen news is out. The positions are unwound.
NH: That said, people are still circulating lists of CAC stocks that SocGen has big positions in – just in case there is further selling.
PM: Got the list?
NH: For interest, CAC40 companies in which SocGen has a >1%
stake according to BBG. Holdings are probably too small to lead
to anything material being done with them to plug the futs book
trading losses, but could lead to spurious speculation:
NH: Holding mkt cap value of holding
Accor 4.8% EUR11.4Bn EUR0.5Bn
Pernod 2.9% EUR15.1Bn EUR0.4Bn
Lagardere 3.6% EUR6.2Bn EUR0.2Bn
Cap Gemini 3.8% EUR5.1Bn EUR0.2Bn
PM: thanksfor that
PM: The other big story pushing prices higher concerns the monoline insurers.
NH: yeah but before we move on
NH: did u see Goldman on SocGen???
PM: Only briefly –w hat were they saying?
NH: removed the stock from its Conviction Sell List this morning
NH: saying that even under severe stress SoCGem’s Tier 1 ration would remain above 7%
PM: Spoke to soon i fear! 
NH: i suppose a rouge trader on the loose does not qualify as severe stress
PM: lol
NH: that must be what they call a black swan
PM: One thing that cheers jsut about everyone in the market up –
PM: having a laugh at Goldman’s expense
NH: The continued turmoil affecting credit markets has led many banks to take further writedowns on their subprime exposures.
In addition, the rating agencies have downgraded or put on negative watch some credit insurers, forcing banks with hedged exposures to mark down those too. At 1.2x 2008E BV and c. 7% dividend yield, we believe that the SocGen share price already discounts a significant probability of such events.
We therefore remove SocGen from our Conviction Sell list. The shares are down 18% since they were added on Nov 20, 2007 and 37% over the last 12 months (vs. -9.0% and -9.1% respectively for the FTSE World Europe).
NH: Current view
SocGen disclosed in 3Q2007 accounts its total exposure to subprime assets (which does not include exposures hedged with monoline insurers, if any). We have estimated the additional writedowns that SocGen may need to book with full year results by applying our broader loss-estimate model for subprime CDOs to
SocGen’s specific exposures (see Exhibit 2).
Even under severe stress, SocGen’s Tier 1 ratio would still
remain above 7% on our estimates. As the potential exposures to other forms of risky assets, including monoliners, remains unknown so far, we believe the risk reward of a Sell case is no longer as attractive: the lack of visibility on SocGen’s assets,
which has weighed on the shares over the last few months, has become a meaningful source of risk to both the upside and the downside. In our view, if SocGen’s losses were limited to the disclosed subprime exposures, the upside risk would be significant as the shares are currently trading at 1.2x 2008 BV, or two standard deviations below the average since 2000.
NH: Our estimates and 3-month SOTP-based price target of €98 are unchanged, and we keep a Sell rating. The key risk to our price target r elates to the level of expected asset losses.
PM: Should quickly answer Parky below…
PM: We dont actually know — SocGen are saying the liquidated this week — but whether this caused falls across all european markets — or simply exacerbated the price moves — is not immediately clear
PM: Should also mention that some people are saying that the Fed’s rate cut was because of this — tho that sounds rather extreme to us
PM: And rahodeb rushes to Goldman’s defence below
PM:
PM: Okay!
NH: right T- 40mins
PM: Wot?
NH: Scottish & Newcastle bidding deadline
PM: Ah
PM: What is the latest intel on this — the blinking price is all over theplace
NH: it is
NH: a lot of people were expecting to see recommended 800p offer on RNS first thing
NH: when that did not happen they panicked
NH: stock got as low as 673p
NH: at that point various rumours were swirling round
NH: deal off
NH: price would be cut
NH: and then Carlsberg would seek extension
PM: V interesting
NH: but the shares have now rallied and are down just 1p at 734p
NH: the guidance coming is that the deal is still on tracl and there is no probs
NH: but I don’t buy that
NH: this has gone down to the wire
NH: obviously there is/or has been a prob
PM: Im with you on this
PM: Too close to call
NH: don’t forgot this is a massively complex deal
NH: lots of different territories involved, tax regimes
NH: transfer pricing
NH: and then we have got a very weak beer market in the UK and other parts of Western Europe
NH: given that the bankers to both sides must be locked in meeting still
NH: i am vary wary of attaching too much credance to anything that comes out of the PR world
PM: One thing I would say tho
NH: i don’t see how they can know what happens
PM: If both sides ask the takeover panel for an extention i am sure it will be granted
NH: sure
PM: This affair could drag out a while yet
PM:
NH: hang on S&N shares rallying
NH: briefly in positive territory
NH: looks like someone is betting its on
PM: Must get back to the market over all — and the monoline effect
PM: Story being — that the FT kicked off — that there is a chance of an orchestrated bail out here
PM: That certain helped Wall St overnight
PM: however…
PM: There is plenty of scepticism regarding this this morning
PM: Not questioning that talks have taken place — simply scepticism taht something real might come of it
PM: Here’s some stuff from BarCap
PM: News: Reports emerged in the press Wednesday night of meetings between the New York State insurance commissioner and several large banks/dealers, regarding a possible private bailout plan for the financial guarantors. No formal release was made by any party, though reports suggested that the proposal called for an initial capital injection of USD5.0bn in the immediate future, followed by an additional USD10.0bn capital contribution over time.
PM: Recommendation: According to our US insurance analysts (Seth Glasser/Joseph Lesko), the market may have gotten ahead of itself with the major rally that took place yesterday afternoon once the bailout story hit the news. First, the NYS insurance commissioner is not the lead bank regulator, and cannot compel the banks to make large capital contributions to the monolines. We do not know yet if the Fed is working in unison with the commissioner, however even if that is the case, the Fed will need to be more concerned with the safety and soundness of the banking system, with the impact of the current crisis on monolines a secondary consideration. This could mean that pressure severe enough to force action might never develop. Second, we believe that it could be very hard for the bank group to agree on a breakdown for contributions. Similar to the super-SIV proposal that ultimately fell apart, banks and dealers have different sizes of monoline exposures, and different counterparty distribution, potentially making some supportive, and others dismissive, of any plan that might near completion. The bottom line is that we view any potential bailout of the monolines as being in the very early innings, and feel it is by no means a certainty. We believe the market should realize that more detail is needed before a rally akin to yesterday’s is really justified. Furthermore, we make the important point that insurance regulators exist to protect the interests of policyholders, so while any capital contributions could be positive for the AAA operating companies, they could have a less favorable impact on the AA holding company level credit profiles. This would very much depend on how any ultimate plan is structured, and whether the regulator continues to permit the regulated insurance entity to support the unregulated holding company.
NH: I reckon this rescue plan is plain fantasy
NH: if Wall Street couldn’t get the SIV rescue fund off the ground
NH: what hope for this?
NH: Still it’s good to that there is such a thing as a New York insurance superintendant
PM: Indeed! bet he has a good uniform
PM: So these are rescue talks — not a rescue plan , necessarily
NH: and you have to ask where will the banks get the cash from???
PM:
PM: SNAP
PM: TAKEOVER PANEL GRANTS s&n BIDDERS EXTENTION TO NOON TOMORROW
PM: But no extension after that
NH: sounds to me like they Carlberg and Heineken are trying to cut the price
PM: Dunno — but the market doesnt like it
PM: S&N price down 15p on that news at 720p
NH: stock rallying now
NH: market does not know how to take this
NH: does a 1 day extension mean there are just a few probs to iron out
NH: and 800p is still coming
NH: or are these last ditch negotiations
NH: i just don’t know
PM: And nor does the market, clearly
PM:
PM: have we anything more to say on monolines??
NH: yep
NH: I suspect that they only way they can truly prop up the monolines
NH: is with government intervention
PM: a la crock?
Readers may also know this former bank as Northern Rock.
NH: As for the idea that private equity could somehow get involved if the big banks don’t
NH: can;t see that happening
PM: fantastical
NH: I mean if they really want to bail out a monoline
NH: they could just go direct and underwrite a massive capital injection
PM: All good points — from below as well as from you Neil
NH:
NH: socgen trading 74.05 down 4.9 euro
NH:
PM: Surprised the damage to Soc Gen is not subtantially more
PM: And im actually surprised they are trading — everyone thought they would remain suspended until a Bank of France statement at 2.30
PM: We’ve got a S&N statement up now
NH: they are saying that the offer is still 800p
NH: DD is complete
NH: and reached agreement with pension fund trustees
NH: but and it is a BIG but
NH: The Consortium’s proposal remains subject to
certain pre-conditions, including finalisation of its Consortium Agreement and
agreement of satisfactory conditions to any offer.
PM: 
NH: so, there has been a bust up between Heineken and Carlsberg
PM: Oh dear — consortium partners have fallen out — or did fall out!
NH: and you have to think that his is Heineken dragging its feet
NH: carlsberg needs to do this deal
NH: Heineken does not
PM: We suspect the market needs to look at the statement again –
NH: i suspect they don’t want to overpay for an assets in mature beer markets
PM: Price of S&N is up 10p now at 745
PM: Fascinating situ this one
PM: here’s the full statement:
PM: SCOTTISH & NEWCASTLE AGREES TO EXTEND DISCUSSIONS WITH CARLSBERG AND HEINEKEN
Scottish & Newcastle plc (“S&N”), Carlsberg A/S (“Carlsberg”) and Heineken N.V.
(“Heineken”) (together the “Consortium”) confirm that S&N has agreed to extend
its discussions with the Consortium in relation to a possible recommended offer
for S&N at 800 pence per share. The parties have approached the Panel to
request a further short extension to the Put up or Shut up deadline to 12 noon
on 25 January 2008. In agreeing to this extension to the deadline, the
Consortium has reaffirmed the price at which it is contemplating an offer is 800
pence per share, confirmed that its due diligence is complete, that it has
reached an agreement with the trustees of the UK pension fund and that its
financing is fully committed. The Consortium’s proposal remains subject to
certain pre-conditions, including finalisation of its Consortium Agreement and
agreement of satisfactory conditions to any offer.
Shareholders should be aware that there can be no certainty that a f
NH: can’t help thinking the price must come off on the statement
NH: the consortium has gone this far and now they can’t agree
NH: surely that’s not positive
PM: yeah well — now the market doesnt agree with you at all — S&N up 21p at 758
NH: yeah the market just sees 800p and does not bother with the rest of the statement
PM:
PM: What else?????
PM: See the Treasury has backed down partially on CGT
PM: people will get 10% on the first millino of gains
PM: £1m at 10%
PM: reasonable compromsie i guess
PM: Wont stop us taking Alphaville off shore tho
PM: Lets look at what is not going up
PM: What you got in RED Neil
NH: Xstrata has taken a thump this morning
NH: stock been as low as £31.94 this morning
NH: but currently 15p at £33.45
PM: this is ONE VOLATILE stock
PM: it flies around like a penny share
PM: when in fact it is a £32bn company
NH: I know it’s up 150p one minute, down 150p the next
PM: So what sparked this morning’s dive??
NH: stories coming out of Brazil
NH: which claim that the govt will block any bid for Xta
PM: Can they do that?
NH: dunno
PM: and why would they want to do that??
NH: U would have thought the company the Brazilian govt would be interested in creating a world class mining company
PM: Do you have the article?
NH: well I have a dodgy translated version of it
NH: which I will paste
NH: it is the front page splash in Valor Economico
NH: here it is
NH: The Planalto not approved the purchase of mining Anglo-Swiss Xstrata by
Companhia Vale do Rio Doce. . The dome of the government, according to the
established value, considers the deal – which is not closed – “expensive”,
“complicated” and “prejudicial to the interests of the country”. So, should
guide the representatives of the board of the Valley that have ties with the
Union – BNDESPar and Previ (the pension fund for employees of the Bank of
Brazil) – to reject the transaction, which depends on approval of the council.
PM: That’s a very dodgy translation
NH: I know it is in pigeon English
NH: but U get the drift
PM: prejudicial to the interests of the country
PM: Can’t see how it would be
PM: but interesting
PM: And suggests that Vale must be close to making some sort of offer
NH: indeed
NH: anyway a lot of people are not taking this article too seriously
NH: here’s the view from one big City house
NH:
spec sales on Xstrata – There is a story in the Brazilian press saying
that the
Brazilian government will block the deal between CVRD and XTA….I would
be very
surprised that the govt would oppose something that is backed by the CVRD
management. The Inco bid was very unpopular with the shareholders but has
paid
off royally..it would be unusual for the govt to stop a management that
has
delivered so much for them.
PM: Thanks for taht
PM:
NH: this morning’s other big faller
NH: and almost the only faller is
NH: Severfield Rowen
NH: FTSE 250 structural steel company
PM: so it is!
PM: A big faller that is
NH: making the structures for Terminal 5 at Heathrow
NH: and the new centre court at Wimbledon
PM: Down 148p at 241p
NH: that’s a drop of 38%
PM: What is going on? Profit warning??
NH: No
NH: just a cautious outlook statement
NH: growth this year would be at “a somewhat lower level” than previous expectations
NH: as we begin 2008 we see a softening within some of our key markets”
NH: all of which shows just how nervous the market remains
NH: you just can’t disappoint at the moment
NH: anyway analysts have been busy slashing forecasts this morning
NH: here are the thoughts of house broker ABN Amro
NH: The group is “seeing a softening in some of its key markets” – this relates primarily to the London Commercial market and some out of town
warehouses (nationwide), where some prospects on the group’s potential list have been delayed or suspended.
We do not believe the group has seen any delays/suspensions to any projects that have been previously been included in its order book, where they have signed contracts in place. As a result of this, we have reduced our FY08 PBT/EPS forecasts from £52.0m/41.0p, to £50.0m/39.5p (c3.5%), however we recognise that our forecasts were already at the bottom of the market range (we believe that FY08F consensus should fall by c12-14%).
NH: Our FY09F PBT/EPS forecasts also move down from £60.7m/48.3m to
£52.0m/41.1p. On our new forecasts, the shares are trading on a FY08F PER of c10x, yielding 5.9%. Based on a FY08F PER multiple in line with the Industrial Engineering sector average, we move our price target to 431p (from 620p – this also reflects the recent move in average sector valuations).
We move our 12-month recommendation to ADD, but recognise that the shares
will come under pressure this morning, despite the already attractive yield. We must not lose sight of the fact that the group is still the dominant player in the UK market, currently still has a record pipeline of work at the Dalton and Watson sites (for the
full year) and good visibility for 6-9 months elsewhere. In fact, the current visibility is better than normal for this time of year.
However, the market will need reassuring over the next 3-6 months, that the group’s order book and prospects list remains secure.
PM: This seems a tad ridiculous. Company sees some softening of its markets — to the stock market takes 40% off its value
PM: Stock has been executed – despite having full order book etc
NH: i know
NH: the market may have rallied big time this morning
NH: but the mood is still incredibily jittery
PM:
PM: Just running thru the losers list — as is my habit
PM: Wots Glaxo doing in there?
NH: undeperforming, which is some achievement in this super soar-away market
NH: off 6p at £12.02
NH: Cazenove doing the damage
NH: they reckon FY results due on Feb 7 could spark a share price correction
PM: Hmmm
NH: stock has outperformed recently
NH: don’t u have some sort of meeting with the chairman of GSK in your diary??
NH: something in West London
PM: 
NH: something begining with T
PM: 
PM: Whats in this Caz note?
NH: what’s in West London
NH: and I don’t mean the GSK HQ
PM: yeah yeah, rugby, right.
PM: Wont effect my editorial view of Glaxo. Gent or no Gent
PM: So what’s in this rubbish Caz note then?
NH: this insightful piece of analysis you mean
NH: Revised FY’07 EPS estimate of 96.4p – below guidance. Due to the weak US cough & cold season in Q4’07 which we believe has impacted sales of Advair, flu vaccines and OTC brands, we have trimmed our FY’07E EPS by 1.5p to 96.4p. This implies EPS growth of +7.1% at CER which is marginally below management’s guidance of 8 to 10% growth for FY’07.
NH: 2008 EPS guidance – we are now assuming 0% growth at CER. Management is expected to issue guidance for FY’08 EPS growth at the FY results on 7 Feb ’08. As GSK has to absorb the loss of nearly £1.7bn of high margin product sales (7% of group turnover) to generics and Avandia decline, we believe this will have a significant impact on operating leverage. We are now looking for FY’08E EPS of 99.8p though this includes c.3.4p currency benefit. On a CER basis we are now forecasting flat EPS for 2008 versus our previous assumption of nearly 4% growth despite the £12bn share buyback programme.
NH: We note that the last time GSK was exposed to such a significant hit in lost sales was back in 2004 as it absorbed the impact of Paxil IR and Wellbutrin SR generics, some £1bn or 5% of group turnover. Management’s FY’04 guidance was to deliver EPS (at CER) at least in line with business performance in 2003. Ultimately GSK delivered +1% sales growth and +2% EPS growth at CER.
NH: While our revised EPS forecasts for 2007 and 2008 are in line with consensus, we believe the improving currency benefit for GSK hides the deteriorating fundamentals for the stock i.e. risk of FY’07 EPS growth missing guidance and the outlook for ’08 EPS for just flat growth at CER.
NH: Cervarix is probably GSK’s most important new product launch since 2000. However post the FDA complete response letter in Dec ’07, we have had no clarity over how long it will take to resolve the outstanding issues. Given the muted share price reaction to the FDA response letter, we believe the risk of a significant delay has not been priced in yet. If additional clinical data is required this could significant push back our 2012E US Cervarix sales forecast of c. £0.6bn.
Potential for a share price correction at the FY results on 7 February 2008
GSK’s share price has been remarkably resilient in our view despite the recent regulatory setbacks and Avandia safety issues. Over the last 3 and 6 months GSK has outperformed the European pharma index by c.4% and 10% respectively. We believe much of the recent performance has been driven by wider macro issues and top down investing rather than bottom up fundamentals.
NH: Considering the short term risk to FY’07 numbers, the probability of just flat EPS growth in 2008 at CER and uncertainty over the timing of US Cervarix approval we believe there is a possibility of a share price correction at the FY’07 results. With GSK currently trading on a 2008E PER of 12.1x, only a 5% discount to its European peer group, we remain cautious on the shares and retain our IN-LINE recommendation
PM: That for that. Tad alarmist in my view. 
PM:
PM: Neil is looking for something — bear with us
PM: It’s an interview with Robert Peston in the telegraph
PM: I like Pesto. He’s a good hack. But Neil is drawing some enjoyment from this interview — with the hack with the golden contacts book
PM:
NH: ntil he joined the BBC two years ago and had to learn new tricks, the cerebral, well-connected and ferociously hard-working Peston had made his mark as an award-winning print journalist, a man who produced scoops like truffles and dealt with principals rather than press officers. He was political editor, banking editor and head of an investigations unit (which he founded) at the Financial Times.ntil he joined the BBC two years ago and had to learn new tricks, the cerebral, well-connected and ferociously hard-working Peston had made his mark as an award-winning print journalist, a man who produced scoops like truffles and dealt with principals rather than press officers. He was political editor, banking editor and head of an investigations unit (which he founded) at the Financial Times.
NH: was a horribly precocious, slightly weird little boy and, from the age of 12, I knew I wanted to go to Balliol. I couldn’t tell you why. Little boys can be strange.” A friend says: “With a background like his, Robert could probably have avoided school altogether and still gone to Oxford.”
NH: Naturally, he did go to Balliol, but claims he did very little work. “I spent most of my time with girls on what you might call hedonistic activities, drank too much and had, frankly, a few years off. I think I was just too pleased with myself when I arrived. Having sailed through school, I thought I could sail through university.” He missed getting a first, which was possibly a good thing, because “it made me see I probably wasn’t as clever as I thought”.
PM: Leave him alone!
NH: After a spell in the City, Peston entered journalism through the Investors Chronicle and discovered it was the thing he loved. “You have to love it, frankly, because we don’t make all that much money. It has to be in your DNA.” He assiduously cultivated “people who know stuff”, never breaking a confidence and always “kicking the tyres on every story” to make sure it was accurate.
NH: ost days, he is up at 6.15am, already a coiled spring, monitoring the news, writing a blog and preparing for the Today programme. His blog, Peston’s Picks, of which he is immensely proud, has a million readers, many of them well?informed, a few critical of his style, but most grateful for his advice.
NH: check that millions of readers
NH: i could go but I would need the sick bucket
PM: Its a good blog
PM: Pack it in Neil.
NH: But no one can deny the sterling significance of his stories and his analysis – or his personal courage. Northern Rock was his finest hour, but his equally impressive achievement has been to battle through when people were waiting for him to fail.
NH: Perhaps symbolic both of his scoop-making and his personal reinvention, the most interesting artefact in his study is a life-size floppy-eared concrete rabbit sitting on top of a magician’s hat.
NH: urggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhh
PM: I’M GOING TO PULL THE PLUG ON THIS!