Investors unnerved by poor factory data March 22, 2012 CYCLICAL sectors led US stocks lower yesterday, setting the S&P 500 up for its first negative week in six, after factory data showed a slowdown in both the Eurozone and China. The weak data is hardly a surprise for markets, as many analysts have already factored in a recession in the Eurozon and early this [...]
FTSE 100 ticks higher as boost for Vodafone helps counter commodity drag March 21, 2012 BRITAIN’S top share index posted a fractional gain yesterday after a volatile session as strength in market heavyweight Vodafone countered weaker commodity stocks hit by below par US data that revived concerns over demand for metals. The UK blue chip index closed up 0.54 points, or 0.01 per cent, at 5,891.95, surrendering a 0.3 per [...]
Tech shares keep S&P at 4-year high March 21, 2012 US stocks mostly fell yesterday, weighed by the energy services sector, but gains in technology shares buoyed the Nasdaq and helped keep the S&P 500 near four-year highs. The benchmark S&P 500 index, up 11.6 per cent so far this quarter, found buyers at the 1,400 level, which has been held for five straight days. [...]
50p rate taxpayers should utilise their fleeting allowance March 21, 2012 BUDGETS are rarely driven by economic sense. More often than not politics triumphs over clarity. And the coalition, like all previous governments, tried to manage expectations – threatening in the lead up to yesterday to tinker with the rules on additional rate taxpayers’ relief on pensions, only to leave the rules unchanged. As such, no [...]
London will be hit hardest by levy increase March 21, 2012 IN YESTERDAY’S budget, chancellor George Osborne increased the stamp duty land tax rate to 7 per cent for residential properties over £2m as well as introducing a stamp duty land tax of 15 per cent for residential properties worth more than £2m purchased by companies and other entities. As Paul Emery, PwC tax director, points [...]
Compliance isn’t the easy path to fortune March 21, 2012 A RECENT Thomson Reuters survey of 500 compliance officers at financial services firms emphasised two things about the extraordinary growth in the importance of the profession in today’s job market. Firstly, it showed how lucrative compliance roles have become – 70 per cent expected the cost of senior compliance staff to be higher in 2012. [...]
JOBS of the WEEK March 21, 2012 Technical specialist Central London £600-£750 per day A Solvency II expert, with an excellent understanding of Pillar 3, is needed to build and develop templates in the insurance and buy side markets. www.cityamcareers.com/job/7390 Senior compliance manager Central London £Market rate The successful candidate will be required to lead a team of managers, have in-depth technical [...]
MBA alumni networks can boost your career March 21, 2012 FOLLOWING a Masters of Business degree (MBA), graduates might be forgiven for forgetting their school and forging headlong into the workplace. The promises made for MBA study are career progression and increased earnings and students will want to take their new skills directly into a job and see rapid return from their significant financial investment. [...]
London is at the global heart of MBA learning March 21, 2012 QS TOP MBA TODAY, many consider London to be the European home of the MBA. But it was only in 1965 that London Business School first offered the degree in the city. Now the location of such well-regarded business schools as Imperial College, Cass Business School and London Business School, London can also boast good [...]
FTSE SUFFERS BIGGEST FALL IN TWO WEEKS March 20, 2012 BRITAIN’S top share index suffered its sharpest fall in two weeks yesterday, as concerns over materials demand in top consumer China hit commodities-linked sectors, marring a rally that had been part-driven by hopes for improving global growth. The benchmark FTSE 100 index closed down 69.7 points, or 1.2 per cent, at 5,891.41, having rallied more [...]