What you need to know before the open – 12/12 December 12, 2013 Another low start for Europe this morning, after US stocks dropped to their lowest in four weeks on taper fears. Asian markets too were subdued by the same uncertainty. The Nikkei share average dropped for a third day to a one-week low in trading today. We do have some European data this morning, but the [...]
Vatican Bank risks blacklist for weak money laundering controls December 12, 2013 THE VATICAN’S bank could this week be blacklisted by the international finance community after investigators found poor anti-money laundering controls in place. The 71-year old lender is being probed by Moneyval, the Council of Europe’s watchdog which monitors standards in finance. If the watchdog rules against the Institute for the Works of Religion, as the [...]
This one chart shows how we’re drastically better off than in 1970 December 11, 2013 The washing machine is one of the many unsung heroes of economic growth – the benefits of which many of us would not want to live without. That's why the chart below is fantastic news. The ownership of washing machines in the UK from 1970 to now has skyrocketed. This data, from the Office [...]
Pictures: London shrouded in fog December 11, 2013 HMS Belfast & Tower Bridge (Laura Lean/City A.M.) The Shard & London Bridge (Laura Lean/City A.M.) Southwark Bridge (Laura Lean/City A.M.)
Markets aren’t buying what Carney’s selling, here’s why December 11, 2013 UK markets continue to believe that interest rates will rise in mid-2015 despite dovish noises from the Monetary policy Committee MPC, according to Capital Economics. MPC members have repeatedly tried to signal that if unemployment falls to seven per cent this will not automatically trigger a rise in interest rates. Overnight index swap (OIS) rates [...]
Here’s how we’re changing our spending habits in post-crisis Britain December 11, 2013 (ONS) Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that households spent an average £489 per week last year. They also show where we scrimped and splurged compared to pre-recession 2006, when average spend was £526.40. (All 2006 and other pre-2012 figures are adjusted for inflation.) Here are some interesting changes: Housing, fuel, [...]
Meet Air Passenger Duty’s number one enemy December 11, 2013 The chief executive of Virgin Atlantic has condemned the UK's punishingly high level of Air Passenger Duty (APD). In a film made for the BBC's Daily Politics programme, Craig Kreeger said the UK government took aviation "for granted in a way that no other government in the world does." Kreeger, 53, is a veteran of [...]
Mining shares are crashing on this Australian update December 11, 2013 An update from Australia's third biggest copper producer, Oz Minerals, has investors panicked. Last night the company announced a disappointing results, alongisde a poor outlook for its flagship mine, Prominent Hill (pictured). Societe Generale's Sebastien Galy says that this indicates over capacity, and that "such over capacity exists also on the transformation side also in [...]
This graph is really depressing if you’re 30 or under December 11, 2013 One in three babies born this year could live to see 100, according to new data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Over the last 30 years (1982 to 2012 – the period the ONS was looking at) life expectancy at birth has risen by around eight years for males and six years for [...]
3 reasons why gold prices could bounce by the end of the year December 11, 2013 Gold prices could see a rally of about five per cent before the end of 2013, according to the chief executive of Compass Global Markets, Andrew Su. Sparking to CNBC, Su said that when a market becomes overly bearish, for him, it's a clear signal to buy – and this is the current case with [...]