RBS shares shoot up 14% on profit expectations

Royal Bank of Scotland shares rocketed this morning after the bank said it expects a big jump in profits in H1.

In its preliminary interim results covering the six months to 30 June, the bank said it expects pre-tax profits to come in at £2.652bn, nearly double the £1.374bn achieved in the first half of 2013. By 11am, the bank's shares were up 14% at 375p, as investors welcomed the positive news after months of uncertainty over the bank's future. The huge jump in the share price lifted RBS out of a slump, amounting to a return of 10.7% year to date. Before today's announcement, shares in the banking group were down 2.75% since the start of the year at 328.8p. Over the past year the bank h...