Firms lash out at government over migration March 6, 2014 BUSINESS leaders have accused the government of holding British firms back after a Conservative minister called for tighter immigration controls, despite a new report which contradicts his claims. In a speech yesterday immigration minister James Brokenshire said the government is sticking to its target of cutting net migration to the tens of thousands by 2015, [...]
Russians hit by US travel ban over Ukraine March 6, 2014 RUSSIAN officials accused of orchestrating the invasion of Ukraine face a US travel ban, are set to have their assets frozen and will be stopped from doing business with American firms, under an order signed by President Obama yesterday. The EU froze ousted President Viktor Yanukovych’s assets in Europe, as well as targeting 18 people [...]
Has the father of Bitcoin finally been found? March 6, 2014 THE RECLUSIVE founder of Bitcoin was yesterday revealed as a 64-year-old Japanese-American man living in California, according to Newsweek – but the man himself denied his involvement in the digital currency. “I’m not involved in Bitcoin,” the man called Satoshi Nakamoto – the name used on the original documents that established the cryptocurrency in 2009 – told [...]
UK finance firms to boost GDP by £62bn in six years March 6, 2014 THE UK’S financial services sector has the potential to add £62bn to GDP by 2020, with practically half of the rise in productivity expected to come from London, according to research published this morning. The new report by PwC argues that the industry can add 0.2 percentage points to GDP growth for each of the [...]
Fresh pensions blow to Scottish independence March 6, 2014 TREASURY minister Danny Alexander will today issue a further blow to Scottish independence hopes, this time to pension providers and those with investments in Scottish schemes. In a speech at a pensions conference in Edinburgh the Liberal Democrat minister will warn that if Scotland votes to leave the UK it will have to develop its [...]
Goldman book deal is scrapped March 6, 2014 THE EX-CITI trader behind Goldman Sachs Elevator, a satirical Twitter account, is no longer launching a book after his publishers cancelled the deal. John Lefevre built up a 650,000-strong following on the social networking site, tweeting gossip and mocking investment banks’ perceived mach culture. He was unmasked as a former Citi trader last month. “In [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 07 March 2014 March 6, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Osborne faces £20bn black hole George Osborne faces a black hole of more than £20bn in the public finances, according to official government economic models. The news suggests that Britain might have to endure an extra year of austerity before the books are balanced. The models by the Office for Budget Responsibility, which [...]
Recruiters cheer soaring pay for jobs in London March 6, 2014 MORE recruiters in London are reporting rising salaries for newly advertised jobs than at any point in the last six and a half years, suggesting that a rapidly firming labour market is finally starting to drive up wages. Only three per cent of consultancies said that starting salaries were falling during February, against 28 per cent [...]
BP more than tripled chief Bob Dudley’s pay last year to £5.2m March 6, 2014 OIL GIANT BP more than tripled chief executive Bob Dudley’s pay in 2013, due to his efforts in turning around the business after the infamous Gulf of Mexico disaster. Dudley received a cash bonus of $2.3m (£1.4m) in 2013, up from $837,000 in 2012, on top of a base salary of $1.8m. Including performance-related shares [...]
Weakest banks’ capital buffers getting worse March 6, 2014 THE WEAKEST of the world’s biggest banks have too little capital to stay safe and are getting further away from their targets, an international group of central bankers warned yesterday. Overall the biggest 102 international banks are getting closer to their targets, with the vast majority either above their target or very close to it. They are [...]