A feeling of not belonging in Greece and Cyprus suggests the worst of the eurozone crisis is yet to come July 23, 2013 The latest barometer of public opinion within the European Union has found that people living in Greece and Cyprus are least likely to feel like citizens of the EU. A respective 56 and 55 per cent of respondents from Greece and Cyprus said they did not feel like EU citizens followed closely by the UK [...]
US bellwether UPS meets earnings estimates July 23, 2013 US delivery company the United Parcel Service has posted results for the second quarter with earnings meeting analyst estimates, making $1.13 a share, down from $1.15 a share last year. Total revenues were up 1.2 per cent to $13.51bn despite customers switching to slower and cheaper services for international routes. The firm is often seen [...]
Gatwick unveils “constellation” airport plan costing just £9bn and ready by 2025 July 23, 2013 Gatwick airport has unveiled its plans for a second runway for its final submission to the Davies Commission, which is looking at prospects for expanding UK air capacity. The airport said the runway would be located south of the existing airport, would cost between £5bn and £9bn, and could be open by 2025. It put [...]
Scottish government says North Sea oil and gas reserves worth up to £1.5tn and accuses Westminster of scaremongering July 23, 2013 The Scottish government has said that over half the value of oil and gas in the North Sea remains to be extracted, challenging pessimistic estimates from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). The OBR has predicted that oil and gas revenues will fall from 0.4 per cent of the UK economy to just 0.03 per [...]
Irish house prices see their first annual rise since January 2008 July 23, 2013 The battered Irish economy has seen large rises in house prices today, with a surge of 1.2 per cent in the month of June after growth of 0.3 per cent last month. This marks the first annual rise in Irish house prices since January 2008, with prices in Dublin increasing 4.2 per cent over the [...]
Spanish prime minister to be questioned in parliament over corruption and economy July 23, 2013 Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy will appear before Congress in the morning of 1 August to discuss political and economic situation in the country. Rajoy will primarily be questioned on the so-called Barcenas scandal, after his Popular Party’s former treasury Luis Barcenas said he was the author of leaked documents alleging party officials were illegally [...]
UK mortgage approvals rise to a 17-month high as chancellor meets with lenders to discuss Help to Buy July 23, 2013 Some 37,278 home loans were approved in June 2013 – a 17-month high – according to a report from the British Banker’s Association. While this came in below analysts' expectations of a rise to 38,500, mortgage approvals were still up 32 per cent from June 2012 and 17 per cent from the 2012 average. It [...]
Ryanair to sell Aer Lingus stake ahead of hotly contested Competition Commission ruling July 23, 2013 Ryanair has offered to sell its stake in Aer Lingus to another EU airline, it announced today. In May, the UK Competition Commission said it was concerned that Ryanair’s 29 per cent stake could reduce competition on routes between the UK and Ireland and would obstruct Aer Lingus’s ability to merge with other airlines to [...]
Spanish recession moderates as GDP shrinks by 0.1 per cent in the second quarter July 23, 2013 The Bank of Spain has announced that GDP shrunk by 0.1 per cent in the second quarter, from a 0.5 per cent downturn in the first quarter. Strong exports drove he moderation of recession, adding 0.4 percentage points to GDP growth. The central bank now sees annual GDP growth of -1.8 per cent in the [...]
Premier Food shares jump as cost cutting boosts profits (but underlying sales are falling) July 23, 2013 Premier foods, the company behind the Hovis bread and Mr Kipling brands, expects full-year results to be at the top end of forecasts after reporting a 50 per cent jump in first half underlying trading profit (release). It now expects cash flow for 2013 to be between £50m and £70m – up from previous expectations [...]