China warns EU it will not back down October 6, 2010 CHINESE premier Wen Jiabao told the European Union (EU) yesterday to stop piling pressure on Beijing to revalue its currency, saying a rapid shift could unleash disastrous social turmoil. Wen told an EU-China business forum in Brussels that China would implement a reform of its currency regime announced in June, making the exchange rate more [...]
CITY A.M. | SHADOW MPC October 6, 2010 ALLISTER HEATH | CITY A.M. “With the services sector growing at a faster rate, the supply and velocity of money accelerating, and inflation too high, it is time for a symbolic quarter point hike in rates.” SIMON WARD | HENDERSON “Maintain vote for quarter-point hike. Monetary conditions are loose with velocity recovering, while CPI inflation [...]
Growth concerns and inflation cause a three-way split October 6, 2010 FOR the second consecutive month, a three-way split has emerged among City A.M.’s Shadow Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) members ahead of the Bank of England’s policy announcement scheduled for midday today. Two members voted for an increase in interest rates of 0.25 per cent while two others thought the time had come to extend quantitative [...]
Weak US employment figures give Fed room for fresh policy stimulus October 6, 2010 US private employers unexpectedly shed jobs in September, reinforcing the conviction that the US Federal Reserve as early as next month will embark on another round of monetary policy stimulus to support the economic recovery. ADP’s national employment report yesterday said US private employer payrolls fell by 39,000 jobs in September. The median forecast from [...]
Sausage showdown gets apprentices sizzling October 6, 2010 Before series six of The Apprentice had even begun there’d been a promotion: step forward Lord Sugar of Clapton. Not that all that ermine and refined company has done much to soften him. “You all look good on paper”, he told the 16 new candidates, “but then so do fish and chips”. It was midnight [...]
Hermes still bullish on 2010 October 6, 2010 FRENCH luxury Hermes is maintaining its 2010 guidance despite a broader rebound in the luxury sector, chief executive Patrick Thomas said yesterday. Asked whether Hermes would raise its forecasts after similar upgrades from luxury fashion companies such as Valentino, Thomas said: “Not us, we keep the same guidance.” Speaking on the sidelines of the Hermes [...]
Chi-X Europe haggles with FSA in bid to avoid Swiss Exchange fee October 6, 2010 CHI-X Europe, the continent’s largest share trading platform, is in talks with Britain’s Financial Services Authority (FSA) to find a way of avoiding new fees the Swiss Exchange will charge for using its price data. The SIX Swiss Exchange plans to impose a new fee of 100,000 Swiss francs (£65,200) on trading rivals, such as [...]
Car sales fall for third time October 6, 2010 CAR SALES in the UK were down for a third month, after September registrations dropped by 8.9 per cent compared to the previous year. According to monthly data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) the fall in sales meant that 335,246 cars were bought last month versus the 367,929 which were sold [...]
PwC boss urges audit review October 6, 2010 IAN POWELL, PwC’s chairman and senior partner has called on the auditing profession to examine its role and responsibilities, and evaluate how it can change. Speaking last night, Powell said that the current public debate is focused on the “value and relevance” of the traditional audit. He said: “While there is no single right answer [...]
Sportingbet profit falls on investigation costs October 6, 2010 ONLINE gambling firm Sportingbet posted a 69 per cent fall in full-year pre-tax profit on one-off costs related to a settlement with the US Department of Justice and its move to the main stock market, but said it started the new year well. The company had agreed to forfeit $33m (£21m) to settle a US [...]