European Commission refers Greece to Court of Justice for failing to recover incompatible state aid July 17, 2013 The European Commission has referred Greece to the European Court of Justice for failing to recover incompatible state aid from Greek casinos and from Aluminium of Greece. In 2009, the Commission received a complaint about the unfair taxation of private casinos in Greece, with a €12 per person admissions tax imposed on private casinos, while [...]
Public sector net debt will hit 99 per cent of GDP by 2063 unless government makes the tough decisions on spending July 17, 2013 Current government policies will cause spending to go up more than revenues in the long-term, meaning it will need to increase taxes or cut spending further, according to the Office for Budget Responsibility’s latest fiscal sustainability report. Assuming that immigration remains low, at around 140,000 per year, the UK faces a demographic shift over the [...]
Eurozone construction sees big downwards revisions and enters contraction in May July 17, 2013 Construction output in the euro area has fallen by 0.3 per cent in May, from a 1.0 per cent rise last month (revised down from 2.0 per cent). In the year to May, Eurozone construction has fallen by 5.1 per cent. The euro saw little reaction to the bad news.
Dramatic fall in jobseeker’s allowance claimants as unemployment remains stable July 17, 2013 UK unemployment in the three months to May was stable at 7.8 per cent, in line with expectations. When compared to the three months to February 2013, this was a fall of 0.2 percentage points, or 57,000 people to 2.51m. The International Labour Organisation measure of unemployment includes jobless people who want to work, are [...]
Pounds jump up a cent against the dollar as Carney unites the Bank of England against further QE July 17, 2013 None of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) wanted more quantitative easing at the last meeting, the Bank of England's minutes reveal. Of the nine MPC members zero voted for increased asset purchases. The pound has spiked up against the dollar on the news. Gilt yields have spiked up following the MPC minutes this morning pic.twitter.com/vtDWn2n1Pj [...]
Waiting for Bernanke: Analyst expectations July 17, 2013 Ishaq Siddiqi, market strategist, ETX Capital: Fed chairman Bernanke’s testimony to US Congress turning out to be the key-risk event over the next two session, prompting both the bulls and bears to avoid building too much risk exposure. Stocks on Wall Street fell on Tuesday and Asian markets were mixed in overnight trade giving European [...]
The wait to see how Carney voted on QE July 17, 2013 The Bank of England will today release its minutes from the Monetary Policy Committee held earlier this month. The meeting was new governor Mark Carney’s first, and the minutes will show whether or not he voted to extend quantitative easing. It will also be interesting to see if managed to persuade any other members to [...]
Before the open – 17/07 July 17, 2013 Chinese shares fell last night for the first time in three days as real estate developers like China Vanke and Poly Real Estate Group plummeted over concerns the government will extend property curbs. News that foreign direct investment in China rose by 20 per cent in June – exceeding analyst expectations of a 0.7 per [...]
BHP’s strong production figures a relief for struggling firm July 17, 2013 Resources company BHP Billiton has reported a strong year of production as Western Australia Iron Ore and Escondida exceeded production guidance and annual records were achieved across seven operations and five commodities. Western Australia Iron Ore set its 13th consevucitve annual production record for the year ended 30 June 2013, with production up seven per [...]
Five holiday insurance mistakes to avoid July 16, 2013 Don’t get caught out by insufficient policies and rising premiums A S WE approach the summer holidays, travel insurance is hitting headlines again. Rising unemployment in southern Europe has led to higher crime rates, with tourists prime targets for petty theft. And the travel association ABTA has found that 24 per cent of holidaymakers now [...]