UK construction industry shows signs of revival June 2, 2015 Construction bounced back in last month, new data has shown, with the Markit/CIPS UK Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index registering 55.9 in May. The figure beat forecasts and remained way above the 50 threshold which indicates growth. However, the sector still has a long way to go after April's dismal reading of 54.2 – although optimism is [...]
Leaders in late night Greek debt talks fail to break deal deadlock June 1, 2015 German Chancellor Angela Merkel and other high-ranking officials met in Berlin late last night to discuss the prospect of a deal for Greece. The country faces a slew of hefty payments in the coming weeks and a real prospect of defaulting on its debt if it is unable to secure a reforms-for-cash deal with creditors [...]
Energy suppliers defend pricing despite government criticism June 1, 2015 Energy secretary Amber Rudd has told the “big six” energy companies to cut bills for consumers, saying the firms can no longer claim they are burdened by the promise of a Labour-led price freeze. Rudd sent letters to the six suppliers – British Gas, EDF Energy, E.On UK, npower, Scottish Power and SSE – on [...]
Strong UK market lifts manufacturers amid lacklustre export sales June 1, 2015 The UK’S manufacturing sector grew at a slightly quicker rate in May, according to a survey, but its growth remains subdued due to weak demand from abroad and lower investment in the oil industry. Markit’s manufacturing purchasing managers’ index, a survey of private sector firms, ticked up to a score of 52, from April’s [...]
Top 100 firms double in value to $16.2 trillion: Apple heads list as HSBC named UK’s most valuable company June 1, 2015 The world’s biggest 100 firms now have a combined value of more than $16 trillion (£10.7 trillion), almost double their market capitalisation in 2009, a PwC study reveals today. Technology firms have driven the boom in valuations – just 12 firms in the sector have a combined valuation of $2.8 trillion. Six years ago, the [...]
Land Registry: UK house prices up in April, driven by semi-detached properties June 1, 2015 The rising value of semi-detached homes has led a rise in house prices across the UK in April, the latest Land Registry figures show. The average price of a semi – now £170,470 – was up 5.6 per cent on last year, helping annual prices rise 5.1 per cent overall, and bringing the average value [...]
At least one German believes a deal with Greece is possible – EU commissioner Guenter Oettinger says agreement could be reached by end of week June 1, 2015 Against a background of pessimism from everyone involved, there is one German official who believes a deal between Greece and its creditors is in sight. Guenter Oettinger, Germany's EU commissioner, said this morning a deal could be achieved this week. "We will need progress at the working group level, in order that we [...]
Greek leader resents way creditors have behaved June 1, 2015 Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras launched a scathing tirade of criticism at the country’s creditors yesterday, accusing them of giving a false representation of negotiations and hitting out at their insistence that Greece stick to its austere path. “The lack of an agreement so far is not due to the supposed intransigent, uncompromising and incomprehensible [...]
Cambridge, Guildford and Reading: These are the UK cities where getting a job is easiest June 1, 2015 If you want to play the odds when going for a job, you might want to focus on some of the major satellite cities around London. The cities with the highest number of jobs per applicant were found in the south of England. Cambridge had just 0.11 jobseekers per vacancy, while Guildford had 0.15. People living [...]
David Cameron says free childcare to double in 2016 to 30 hours per week for working parent households May 31, 2015 Working parents can look forward to 15 hours of additional free childcare each week as soon as next year, the Prime Minister will say today. David Cameron will announce that the government is bringing forward its plans to increase free childcare for working parents, from 15 hours to 30 hours per week. On [...]