A wave of change for accounting rules August 19, 2010 CHANGE tends to be resisted, especially if it will cost people money. This explains the frosty reception given to news that US and international accounting standard bodies are proposing to change the ways that firms account for leases. The new rules will mean that leases have to be recorded on a firm’s balance sheet; currently [...]
BRANDING August 19, 2010 Q. I am starting a new company and need to think about branding. Is there a way I can do it while keeping costs to a minimum? A.The first thing to do is decide if you have the skills to do it yourself. The main components of a brand are visual: for example, the website, [...]
FTSE falls as economic woes hit banks and commoditiesTHE LONDON REPORT August 18, 2010 Banks and commodity stocks pushed Britain’s top shares lower yesterday, with worries over the global economic recovery knocking sentiment and weak volumes exacerbating stock moves as the FTSE 100 remained range-bound. The FTSE 100 closed down 47.68 points, or 0.9 per cent, at 5,302.87 after ending 1.4 per cent higher on Tuesday at 5,350.55 for [...]
Consumer stocks lift relieved Wall St August 18, 2010 WALL Street rose yesterday, led by gains in consumer stocks after a sales forecast from discounter Target temporarily quelled concerns about consumer demand. Shares of Target rose 2.5 per cent to $51.95 after the company said it expects same-store sales to increase one per cent to three per cent in the third quarter and be [...]
It’s time to reject the Van Gogh fallacy August 18, 2010 HOW far should your boss mess with your mind? Or to put it another way, is your mental health your employer’s business? First up, let’s have some numbers. Estimates of how many of the British workforce suffer mental health problems a year vary from one in three to one in six – probably it depends [...]
Don’t be taken for a fool by a gold guarantee August 18, 2010 INVESTORS with money in physical gold exchange-traded products (ETP) might have had a scare this week as gold-backed ETPs came under heavy fire in a paper by Hinde Capital, a hedge fund. The hedge fund compared precious metal exchange-traded funds (ETF) to the collateralised debt obligations (CDO) at the heart of the financial crisis and [...]
Cut your exposure to cyclical stocks August 18, 2010 IT IS a rare thing that Americans look at Europe with envy. But in recent weeks, more than a few policymakers stateside have been turning a rather violent shade of green. Over the course of the summer, US economic data has been weakening, while Europe is seeing something of a revival as worries about stress [...]
THE TIPSTER August 18, 2010 TODAY’S interim results from Cineworld will be essential viewing with the cinema chain set to post a decent performance helped by good revenues from popular 3D films, including Avatar and Toy Story 3. In spite of the negative impact of the World Cup, which kept people away from the big screen, along with the spell [...]
LISTED PRODUCT NEWS August 18, 2010 ETF LANDSCAPE IS STILL GROWING The latest ETF landscape survey from iShares, the ETF provider, has found that the industry continued to grow throughout July. At the end of July, the global ETF industry had 2,282 ETFs with assets of just over $1,095bn, from 124 providers listed on 42 exchanges across the world. Europe has [...]
Banks and miners push FTSE to its highest close in a week August 17, 2010 FINANCIAL stocks and commodity companies pushed Britain’s top share index up for a third session by the close on Tuesday, as fears about a global economic slowdown abated and raw material prices gained. The FTSE 100 ended up 74.45 points, or 1.4 per cent, at 5,350.55, its highest close in a week. Miners were firmer, [...]
