PMI data will show growth slowing down August 1, 2010 LEADING economic surveys are expected to show this week that the UK continued to grow at a solid pace in July, though economists warned it was unlikely that we would see a repeat of the blistering pace of growth recorded between April and June. All three purchasing managers’ indices (PMIs) to be reported this week [...]
Experts split on dangers of hike in interest rates August 1, 2010 AS the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) looks set to keep interest rates at 0.5 per cent for another month, economists are divided on when the loose monetary policy should finally be tightened. There is increasing pressure to raise interest rates for the first time since March 2009 to try and halt inflation, [...]
ECONOMIST VIEWS: WHAT DO YOU EXPECT FROM THE PMIS THIS WEEK? August 1, 2010 JONATHAN LOYNES | CAPITAL ECONOMICS “Services output is estimated to have risen by 0.9 per cent in the second quarter but the sharp drop in the business expectations balance in June suggests that the headline activity index could have fallen further in July.” DAVID PAGE | INVESTEC “The manufacturing and services PMIs are likely to [...]
Claridge’s owner is close to loans deal August 1, 2010 THE OWNER of the five-star Claridge’s, Berkeley and Connaught hotels is close to a deal to refinance its £600m debts. Maybourne Hotel Group is in talks with Westbrook Partners, an American real estate investor, and another unidentified firm over selling a £200m stake in the hotelier. Maybourne has spent months seeking investors for the refinancing, [...]
Spotlight turns to US over huge budget deficit August 1, 2010 THE debt spotlight seems to be panning across the Atlantic from Europe to the United States. The Congressional Budget Office in the US has warned that – unless politicians act fast – growing budget deficits will cause public debt to rise to unsupportable levels. In fact, it points out that US government debt has grown [...]
Spaceship hotel gets the green light August 1, 2010 A SIX-STAR hotel on the bank of the Thames near Blackfriars was granted planning approval by the City of London on Friday. The £250m, seven-storey hotel, dubbed The Spaceship, is to be built at Puddle Dock on the site of the existing Mermaid Conference Centre, by Malory Clifford’s development firm Blackfriars Investments. The Will Alsop-designed [...]
Greek trucker strike ends August 1, 2010 Greek truckers yesterday ended a six-day strike, handing a victory to the socialist government in its efforts to liberalise the recession-hit economy. Truckers had walked off the job on Monday to protest against plans to open up their sector, a reform required by a multi-billion euro EU/IMF bailout plan. Taking an unusually tough stance, the [...]
Rank to grow casinos chain August 1, 2010 GAMING firm Rank Group is planning to spend £50m to expand its casino operations by a third. The company is understood to be aiming to build at least five casinos in northern and central England over the next two years at a cost of £23m, with another five to be rolled out later. Rank, which [...]
Corporate pensions shortfall shrinks £26bn as assets heal August 1, 2010 RECOVERING equity values and rising corporate bond yields have shaved £26bn from the combined shortfall of the UK’s 200 largest private defined benefits pension schemes. The retirement funds’ deficit narrowed from £100bn to £74bn between June and July, according to risk management firm Aon Consulting. Trustees of schemes run by corporate giants such as BA [...]
Employers are breaking the law by not paying interns, says report August 1, 2010 COMPANIES that take on unpaid interns are almost certainly breaking the law, according to a new study. The report, created by think-tank the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) and campaign group Internocracy, says there is a mistaken belief that if both the company and the employee understand the position is voluntary they do not [...]