EU carbon prices hit 17-mth high May 3, 2010 European carbon prices rallied into a second month yesterday, surging to a new 17-month high on the back of higher German power prices, a bailout package for debt-stricken Greece and a leaked EU document, traders said. EU Allowances futures for delivery in December climbed as high as 16.56 euros a tonne, up 62 cents or [...]
BUFFETT PULLS OUT ALL THE STOPS BY CAVORTING WITH HOUSEWIVES May 3, 2010 WARREN Buffett has been a well-recognised face over in the States for what seems like forever, but the old man certainly hasn’t lost his star appeal yet. Buffett’s no stranger to popular culture – he’s even made cameo appearances before in US soap opera All My Children (when he came to the rescue of one [...]
BILL OF THE WEEK May 3, 2010 THESE six successful property tycoons hit Boyd’s Brasserie near the Embankment last week to continue celebrating a big deal after a night out on the town the evening before. Coffees were ordered all round as tonic for the sore heads, along with full English breakfasts – Lincolnshire sausage, grilled bacon, mushrooms, tomato, scrambled eggs, baked [...]
CAMERON WINS AS BROWN FADES AWAY April 29, 2010 DAVID Cameron won the final leaders’ debate by a clear margin last night, as the Prime Minister’s chances of re-election faded into the distance. Labour aides acknowledged that the debate on the economy marked the last opportunity for Gordon Brown to save the party’s flagging fortunes, but nearly all the instant opinion polls had him [...]
Nick Clegg snaps at heels of Tory victor April 29, 2010 DAVID Cameron might have emerged as the clear winner of last night’s election debate, but the Liberal Democrat leader is still too close for comfort. A instant poll from Populus even put Clegg and Cameron neck-and-neck on 38 per cent each, with the Prime Minister trailing in last place with just 25 per cent of votes. Cameron’s [...]
Sterling crisis fears spread April 29, 2010 STERLING is teetering on the verge of collapse as Spain’s downgrade focuses the spotlight firmly on the UK’s public finances and the political uncertainty ahead of next week’s general election, a top French bank warned yesterday. BNP Paribas’ senior currency strategist Ian Stannard said that the pound faced a no-win situation after the election regardless of [...]
Demagogic debate gives no answers April 29, 2010 HOW unedifying, how disappointing, how distressing. Last night’s “debate” on the economy was the worst yet. It was littered with errors, lies and incorrect claims – from all three leaders. The assumptions were astonishingly retrograde; it felt at times as if we were back in the 1970s, such were the collectivist, class war and protectionist [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING April 29, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES STEEL INDUSTRY SET FOR A ‘NEW VOLATILITY’ Lakshmi Mittal warned yesterday that the impending large rise in the costs of iron ore would lead to “new volatility” in the steel industry by pushing up prices of the metal in a development that could harm the competitiveness of some of ArcelorMittal’s European plants. The [...]
Viacom first quarter profits up April 29, 2010 Viacom’s first quarter profit topped Wall Street expectations, aided by a recovery in advertising sales and hit shows such as “Jersey Shore” on MTV. Advertising sales rose three per cent worldwide and one per cent in the United States, signaling a rebound in a market dogged by one of its worst stretches in decades. The [...]
Australia says yes to gas buyers April 29, 2010 Australia has given foreign-investment approval for Royal Dutch Shell and PetroChina to buy coal-seam gas firm Arrow Energy for $3.2bn (£2.1m), Arrow said yesterday. The approval clears a major regulatory hurdle and comes after Australia’s competition regulator said it would not oppose the deal, but the transaction still requires regulatory approval from Chinese authorities and [...]