Eurozone price growth hovers at four year low March 17, 2014 INFLATION in the Eurozone stayed at a four year low during February, despite early indications that price growth was slightly firmer during the month. The currency union’s harmonized index of consumer prices has risen by 0.7 per cent between February 2013 and last month, significantly below the European Central Bank’s target of close to two [...]
US factories rebound from winter freeze March 17, 2014 US INDUSTRIAL output hit a record high in February, official figures showed yesterday. The upbeat numbers reassured economists that the disappointing figures of recent months were caused by the bad winter weather, rather than any underlying slowdown in the world’s largest economy. Industrial output increased by 0.6 per cent in February, according to data from [...]
UK’s exporters forecast good times to come March 17, 2014 BRITISH exporters are expecting robust growth in the next two years, as economies on either side of the channel provide a better climate for trade, despite the UK’s poor investment in research and development. Exports from the UK are projected to increase by five per cent during each of the next two years, and confidence [...]
Tech firms grab the most office space in London’s Square Mile March 17, 2014 TECHNOLOGY, media and telecoms (TMT) firms have stepped up their presence in the Square Mile after taking up almost of a quarter of all office space lettings in the City last year, figures out today show. According to research for the City of London by property agents JLL and DTZ, tech firms snapped up 1m [...]
Smartphones push spending online to £7.2bn March 17, 2014 ONLINE retailers took £7.2bn of sales in February as the number of people using their smartphones and tablets to shop soared, new figures released yesterday show. According to e-tail industry body IMRG and advisory firm Capgemini, online retail sales increased by 18 per cent in February compared with the same time last year thanks to [...]
Paris calls off car curbs after pollution eases March 17, 2014 A BAN on half of the cars in Paris has been lifted after just one day after pollution levels fell back below those in Beijing. Motorists with even-numbered licence plates were ordered off the roads in the French capital yesterday, though nearly 4,000 drivers were fined €22 each for breaching the limit imposed to try [...]
Chinese exchange raises $10m investment from Bitcoin bugs March 17, 2014 CRYPTOCURRENCY Bitcoin has been given a new lease of life in China, despite a recent crackdown in the world’s second largest economy. The company that claims to be China’s largest Bitcoin exchange by volume – called OKCoin – has announced a $10m Series A funding round, with venture capital firm Ceyuan leading the way, followed [...]
Cairn slides on plugged well March 17, 2014 CAIRN Energy slumped almost three per cent in early trading yesterday, yet closed just 0.2 per cent down, after the Scottish oil and gas explorer said a well located off Morocco had been plugged and abandoned without testing. The FTSE 250 firm said that the area requires further evaluation by itself and its joint venture [...]
Genel ramps up Kurdish output March 17, 2014 OIL EXPLORER Genel Energy, which is led by former BP chief executive Tony Hayward, said yesterday that it has started production from two new wells in Kurdistan. Norway’s DNO International, in which Genel holds a 25 per cent working interest, is operator of the Tawke licence, where the two wells are producing at a combined [...]
Brady’s new contracts disappoint March 17, 2014 Brady, a software maker for the commodities sector, has reported earnings before exceptional costs falling nearly 40 per cent to £3.5m with revenue rising four per cent to £29.3m. Chief executive Paul Fullagar said that its 16 new contracts in 2013, including two record contracts, had taken longer to negotiate and had impacted performance. “While [...]