City ignores critics with rush to float June 16, 2014 LONDON’S fragile new issues market will shrug off the fears of sceptical fund managers this week as two of the country’s biggest employers pull the trigger on multi-billion pound listings. FTSE giant Lloyds Banking Group is expected to lift the bottom level of the price range for the listing of high street offshoot TSB, while [...]
Iraq chaos spreads as militants close in on Baghdad June 16, 2014 THE VICIOUS conflict in Iraq moved closer to Baghdad yesterday, threatening the country’s seat of power. The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isis) militant group took violent control of villages in Diyala province for the first time yesterday. The district is just north-east of Baghdad, and its capital, Baquba, is less than 40 [...]
Asian shares fall as Iraq conflict escalates June 16, 2014 Asian shares are down on the back of fears the escalating conflict in Iraq could disrupt oil supplies. On Sunday, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria captured the city of Tal Afar and claimed to have killed 1,700 government troops over the weekend. The US has boosted security at its embassy in Baghdad and [...]
London tech sector to add 46,000 new jobs by 2024 June 16, 2014 LONDON’S digital tech economy is growing at a rate of 5.1 per cent annually and is set to contribute an additional £12bn to the overall economy over the next decade, mayor Boris Johnson will announce today marking the start of London Tech Week. The tech sector is also set to create 46,000 new jobs in [...]
Cameron set to relax visa rules for the Chinese June 16, 2014 DAVID CAMERON is expected today to announce relaxed visa rules for Chinese nationals wanting to visit the UK, as Chinese Premier Li Keqiang prepares to meet with the Prime Minister tomorrow. The policy change comes after China’s ambassador to the UK criticised the strict rules imposed on travellers from the country last week. Liu Xiaoming [...]
Budget prompts pensions wave June 16, 2014 Changes to pension contribution schemes announced in the Budget have prompted 7.3m people to start saving for retirement or increase contributions, a new report reveals. A report by pensions specialist Ros Altmann, released today, found 41 per cent of retirement savers admit they do not understand pension saving schemes, but 24 per cent – around [...]
Grid boss wants jobs education June 16, 2014 National Grid chief executive Steve Holliday has called on the government to measure school success by students’ employability, rather than just exam results. The FTSE 100 boss said changing the focus of what makes a school successful could help prepare students for working life. Holliday said: “The government should give as much weight to post-school [...]
Number of fraud office raids rises June 16, 2014 The number of Serious Fraud Office (SFO) raids on fraud suspects has trebled in a year, jumping to 26 in the last year up from the eight raids conducted in the previous 12 months. According to law firm Pinsent Masons, the increase suggests the SFO is finally bouncing back from its 2011-12 year, when all [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 16 June 2014 June 16, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES GSK spin-off set for possible listing A British biotech company spun out of GlaxoSmithKline is gearing up for a possible stock market flotation after strong trial results for a new painkiller. Convergence Pharmaceuticals was set up in 2010 as part of a restructuring of GSK’s research and development operations. The UK’s biggest drugmaker [...]
British recovery slowed by horde of zombie firms June 16, 2014 ZOMBIE firms kept alive by ultra-low interest rates are the biggest drag on productivity in the UK economy, the Bank of England said in a report today. Weak firms have not gone bust because they are helped with low interest rates and have been given room to delay tax payments. As a result there is [...]