Commodities in freefall as China faces slowdown August 4, 2015 Mining stocks were dealt a body blow yesterday, with one index dropping to a 13-year low, as Chinese manufacturing PMI data dragged the commodities market down yet again. The data, which came out yesterday morning, showed that the downturn in China’s manufacturing sector intensified at the start of the third quarter. Production was cut at [...]
London workers bargain for higher pay as economy grows August 3, 2015 With the UK economy growing strongly, London’s job hunters are putting more emphasis on pay when searching for potential employers, new research shows. Compensation is now the top factor when considering jobs with 20 per cent of Londoners saying they were most motivated by pay, according to survey figures released today by recruiter Randstad. It [...]
EU outlook revised to “negative” from “stable” by Standard & Poor’s August 3, 2015 Standard and Poor’s has revised the EU’s outlook to negative due to the ongoing Greek debt crisis and growing fears that the UK could vote to leave the EU. The decision also reflects that S&P believe the EU’s AA+ credit rating has a greater than 1-in-3 change of being cut in the next 2 years. This [...]
British investment in the US continues to rise, boosting jobs across all states August 3, 2015 The UK is the US's number one foreign investor, now accounting for almost a fifth of total funding pumped into the country. Read more: The UK is finally catching up with US in biotech investment – venture capital funding more than doubled last year According to the most recent figures released by the CBI, [...]
Brent crude oil drops below $51 per barrel for the first time since January August 3, 2015 The price of Brent crude dipped as much as 3.4 per cent in afternoon trading to $50.43 per barrel, its lowest since the January this year, as the commodities crisis continued to weigh on the market. The news drove the rouble down 1.67 per cent against the dollar, to $0.01593. Russia's economy is heavily dependent [...]
Greek shares plummet as the Athens Stock Exchange reopens August 3, 2015 Greece's main stock index continued to haemorrhage today after the cash-strapped country's markets were opened for the first time in five weeks. By this afternoon the Athens Stock Exchange had recovered slightly from the earlier sell-off and was down 16.3 per cent at 667.46 points. It posted its worst ever one-day performance after only a few minutes of trading this [...]
UK manufacturing growth ticks up in July August 3, 2015 The widely watched Markit/CIPS manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose to 51.9 in July, ahead of the previous month's reading of 51.4, and above the crucial 50 mark which indicates growth. But it remained well below the average of 54.3 recorded since April 2013, when the UK economy was beginning to bounce back from the [...]
Purchasing Managers’ Index: Eurozone manufacturers shrug off Greek debt crisis in July August 3, 2015 The Eurozone's manufacturing sector continued to grow modestly in July, suggesting any effect from the Greek debt crisis remained limited. Markit's Eurozone manufacturing PMI hit 52.4 in July, ahead of the earlier flash estimate of 52.2, and also above the crucial 50 mark which indicates growth. This also meant it managed to hold close to June's [...]
Commodity prices hit corporate spending – global capex down at least 10per cent dragged by sliding energy and mining sector August 3, 2015 The long slide of commodities prices is taking its toll on corporate spending, it seems: global expenditure is predicted to shrink by at least 10 per cent this year, according to new research from rating agency Standard & Poor's (S&P). Spending is expected to continue falling well into next year, according to S&P’s forecast, before [...]
Bank of England hawks to vote for interest rate hike on Super Thursday August 2, 2015 The Bank of England will for the first time release a string of reports alongside its monthly monetary policy decision this week. And at least two hawks are expected to break rank and vote in favour of an interest rate hike. The so-called Super Thursday meeting will see the central bank publish its monthly decision [...]