Barclays Share News (BARC)

(ShareCast News) - The trial of six former Barclays bankers accused of rigging international borrowing rates is on a knife edge as barristers for half of the defendants have yet to agree fees for the case weeks before it begins. Barristers acting for Jonathan Mathew, Stylianos Contogoulas and Alex Pabon are in last-minute negotiations with the Legal Aid Agency over what they will be paid for the trial, which opens in January and is expected to last more than three months. - The TimesChina's economy grew faster than expected in the third quarter, as resilient growth in the emerging services sector helped compensate for weakness in manufacturing and property. China's statistics bureau said on Monday that gross domestic product rose 6.9% in the third quarter in inflation-adjusted terms, down from 7% in the first two quarters and 7.3% for full-year 2014. It was the slowest quarterly growth rate since the first quarter of 2009 but higher than expectations of 6.7% in a Bloomberg poll. - Financial TimesThe stock market is set for another record year of dividend payments, but clouds are gathering over 2016 as some large corporates cut their payments, raising questions over the present value of the market. The concern has emerged from a review of the third quarter of this year by Capita Asset Services. The third quarter boasted a headline figure of £27.2bn in dividends paid, up year-on-year by 6.8% and the highest third-quarter payout on record. - The TimesHouse prices hit new highs this month as first-time buyers scramble to get their foot on the housing ladder, according to property website Rightmove. Average asking prices rose to £296,549 in October, 5.6% higher than they were a year ago. Especially strong demand from first-time buyers has seen the price of properties bought by those getting on the housing ladder jump by close to 10% in the period. Miles Shipside, a Rightmove housing analyst, said that the growth in average house prices was "mainly being fuelled by the heady price rises of typical first-time-buyer homes". - The Daily TelegraphUK consumer confidence climbed to its highest level in at least four years in the third quarter, as low inflation and rising pay packets saw households shrug-off this summer's market turmoil. Britons were more upbeat about their finances in the three months to September than at any time since records began in 2011, according to Deloitte's latest consumer tracker. - The Daily Telegraph