http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b7616a0e-f16b-11dd-8790-0000779fd2ac.html

People close to the situation said the discussions over UBS Financial Services – acquired in 2000 in the $11.8bn purchase of PaineWebber, the US brokerage and investment bank – were preliminary and were unlikely to be rekindled.

News of the talks with Morgan Stanley will raise further questions over the strategy of UBS, which has been buffeted by credit-related losses and a US government investigation into its offshore banking activities for American clients.

The collapse of Lehman Brothers and the conversion of Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs into bank holding companies so they could receive US government aid have called into question the viability of stand-alone investment banks.

preliminary 予備的な;準備; 前置き.

rekindle 〈…を〉再び元気づける.

buffet 〈波・不運などが〉〈人を〉もむ，左右に打ちつける《★しばしば受身で用いる》

viability (計画などの)実行可能性

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/d45ab80a-f106-11dd-8790-0000779fd2ac.html

This has knocked back the spring feel good factor, which we hoped would kick start the economy,” said Stephen Alambritis from the FSB.

Transport disruptions were widespread.

City traders gained a rare respite from the turbulence of the past few months.

One managing director of a UK broker complained that a third of his staff were “at home with their kids riding toboggans”.

knock back 〈人を〉びっくりさせる; ろうばいさせる

disruption 途絶; 混乱

respite ひと休み

toboggan トボガンそり