Share Sale Announced at Barclays

Barclays has announced the launch of a £4.5 billion sale of new shares today.

The bank is hoping to raise the sum through selling the stock to a host of overseas investors. Should the share sale, also known as a "rights issue", prove successful, Barclays would be able to offset some of the losses caused by the ongoing credit crunch, and also fund new corporate acquisitions.

Japanese financial giant Sumitomo Mitsui and middle eastern investors Qatar Holdings were also said by the bank to be committed to buying up £1.76 billion and £500 million of the stock respectively. The move follows the success of the record £24 billion rights issue from Barclays' similarly credit crunch-hit rival RBS, which sold 97 per cent of its new shares offered.

"Significant opportunities therefore exist to attract flows of new business at expanded margins consistent with Barclays' strategy to seek higher growth over time by diversifying its profits base," the bank said in a statement.

The rights issue news was positively received on the London market today, with Barclays shares climbing around four per cent. Overall, the FTSE 100 Index, on which the bank's stock is listed, climbed 27.7 points to 5662.4 in its first hour of trading this morning.