The global battle for the internet is about to begin January 16, 2012 2012 is the year that freedom online will be challenged. In the UK and the US, proposals are being introduced for website blocking in the name of copyright and child protection. In America, the controversial Stop Online Piracy Act (Sopa) is already causing seismic protests. But in 2012 we will also see a push to [...]
Do not blame Opec for a rise in the price of oil January 16, 2012 WHEN discussing oil prices, it is common to encounter two views that are confused: the first is that Opec, the cartel to which many of the world’s oil-producing countries belong, sets the price of oil, the second is that it can cause inflation by increasing the price of oil through restriction of the quantity it [...]
RAPID RESPONSES January 16, 2012 Clubcards are gold I disagree with Richard Perks’s analysis of Tesco. [Tesco’s marketing strategy needs a new broom in 2012 to sweep away its Clubcard, last Friday] If Tesco invested in a cost-cutting exercise it would probably discover what most businesses using voucher/discount schemes are finding; that cheap customers pay at the cheap price and [...]
With the Eurozone tottering it may be time we signed up for some Norwegian lessons January 15, 2012 NORWAY is indeed a country of good fortune. Post World War II, the quality of living was relatively poor by Western standards, based upon the proceeds of an old-fashioned primary economy. Since the discovery of North Sea oil in the 1960s, this nation of only 4.9m has rocketed to fourth in the IMF’s league table, [...]
Shareholders are accountable for executives’ pay January 15, 2012 BONUS season is always a potentially politically explosive time and this year is unlikely to prove any different. Total bonus payouts across the City are expected to fall steeply this year from £6.7bn in 2010/11 to £4.2bn (roughly a third of the £11.6bn peak before the crisis) but – understandably – this will not prevent [...]
RAPID RESPONSES January 15, 2012 Disagree with Nick I very much agree with Allister Heath’s comments on Friday [Clegg’s latest nonsense] about Nick Clegg’s initiative regarding job applications. As you say, the key is improving education, and not coming up with idiotic proposals such as this. I come from a pretty humble background, and had a solid, redbrick grammar school [...]
Tesco’s marketing strategy needs a new broom in 2012 to sweep away its Clubcard January 12, 2012 THESE were bad figures, Tesco can’t get away from that. Britain’s biggest retailer reported its worst Christmas sales performance for decades on Thursday and warned it would see minimal profit growth next year. Down 1.3 per cent like-for-like (including VAT) in the UK was much worse than any other figures we’ve had from the major [...]
Romney seeks a third victory to gain nomination January 12, 2012 IT MAY pain the political class, but Mitt Romney deserves some credit. He has now accomplished what Reagan, both Bushes, Dole, and McCain all failed to do – win both Iowa and New Hampshire. Romney now finds himself heading to South Carolina searching for an unprecedented hat-trick. Although surrounded by loyal supporters, Romney’s victory remarks [...]
RAPID RESPONSES January 12, 2012 Back to school As a business studies teacher of many years standing, I read David Rutley’s column [Our schools must be open to business so we can have a bright economic future, Wednesday] with much interest. I agree wholeheartedly and believe much more should be done in order to promote the subject at school level. [...]
It’s time for the FSA to get on top of the bankruptcy of MF Global – and right away January 11, 2012 FIVE years ago we decided to set up our firm’s brokerage accounts in the UK, as we believed we would be fully protected here. After all, there was no precedent of clients ever suffering any write-offs on their accounts as a result of a broker’s bankruptcy. Today we find ourselves regretting that decision. The Lehman [...]