This is thought to be a reference to informal talks with Euronext. Talks have also taken place with the New York Stock Exchange in recent weeks.
The statement was seen in the City as an attempt to generate an auction for one of the UK’s most vital financial assets.Nasdaq, which has seen its 950p-a-share offer rejected, paid £11.75 a share to get the 15 per cent stake on Tuesday. But labour market trends should help quash any possible thoughts of a rate rise this year.”Measured by International Labour Organisation standards, the unemployment rate rose to 5.1 per cent in the three months to February, with the level at 1.56 million.. “This casts doubts on the Bank of England’s upbeat view on UK economic prospects this year,” he said. “While the committee is still fretting over possible inflation prospects and is holding out hope that growth will strengthen above trend, the chances of another cut in rates are slim. The previous month’s figure was revised higher from 14,600 to 19,900, marking the biggest monthly rise since December 1992.

One reason was the continued decline in manufacturing jobs, which fell to the lowest since records began in 1978. The number of people working in the sector fell 113,000 to 3.1 million in the three months to February when compared with a year earlier.The number of jobless people has risen by more than 100,000 in the past year and could be back at the 1 million mark by October, according to Philip Shaw, at Investec. Its shares, which listed at 100p, closed down 2.5p at 192.5p.. The number of jobless people claiming benefits in Britain has leapt to its highest in nearly three years, sparking worries that the economy is not as strong as previously thought and could be heading for a further slowdown.

The official figures released yesterday also showed wages jumped 4.2 per cent in the three months to February mainly because of higher financial bonuses, reflecting good times in the City with record profits for banks. It is paid back in the carbon credits that are subsequently produced, which it can sell to traders or polluters in Europe.
Trading Emissions said it needed the new cash because it had almost spent the £135m raised when it listed on the Alternative Investment Market last April. The company said it was in talks to invest in 35 more projects, which involve 55.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide.Past schemes, in which it has invested in more than 25 countries, include renewable energy projects and landfill gas. Under final salary schemes workers receive a proportion of the salary they are paid immediately before they retire for every year they have been a member of the scheme.