BHP Billiton due to report largest loss since its inception August 14, 2016 Struggling mining giant BHP Billiton is expected to reveal a historical near $7bn (£5.4bn) loss in its full-year results next week. Analysts have predicted that the Samarco dam disaster and a tough business environment led to the largest loss in BHP's history, which goes back to the 1850s. Read more: BHP Billiton downgraded by Moody’s "This represents BHP Billiton's largest corporate [...]
The Bank of England’s chief economist has “sympathy for savers” after rate cut August 14, 2016 One of the Bank of England's senior policy-makers has said he has "enormous" sympathy for savers, after the central bank slashed interest rates in the wake of the Brexit vote. Andy Haldane, one of nine members of the BoE's rate-setting monetary policy committee who voted in favour of cutting rates even further from their already historic low, said [...]
Economists expect another month of stable inflation before sterling’s Brexit devaluation hits prices August 13, 2016 Inflation figures out this week are expected to reveal sterling's dramatic post-referendum collapse is yet to hit prices for UK consumers. Statistics out on Tuesday, which will show how quickly prices rose in July, the first full month after the referendum, will also be watched closely by commuters as they determine how much train tickets will [...]
Holiday taxes add £131 to typical family getaway August 13, 2016 A plethora of holiday taxes can add more than £130 to the typical family summer getaway, research by the TaxPayers' Alliance (TPA) has found. A combination of Air Passenger Duty (APD), the Insurance Premium Tax and the cost of VAT on holiday essentials such a sun cream and swimming costumes, sets vacationers back an extra £61.12 per adult [...]
At the close: Sterling loses shine and FTSE 100 goes nowhere August 12, 2016 Markets begun the weekend with a whimper today despite some notable summer data dumps as the FTSE 100 stayed stuck and the pound dropped down. Traders roundly dismissed some worse than expected official construction data which showed the industry entered recession in the second quarter of the year as a little out of date for their [...]
IMF: China faces bumpy road to sustainable growth August 12, 2016 The Chinese authorities face "many challenges" in rebalancing its economy, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned today. Conducting its annual health-check of the world's second largest economy, the IMF said China needed to step up its reforms of the unproductive state owned enterprise (SoE) sector, reform governance rules to promote financial stability and drop [...]
US dollar fades as retail sales stagnate and send sterling back above $1.30 August 12, 2016 The US dollar has sunk after fresh economic data showed the recovery stumbled in July. Retail sales flat-lined in the world's largest economy in July and factory prices defied expectations to fall into negative territory. The pound climbed back above $1.30, up 0.5 per cent on the day, reversing some of the losses from earlier this [...]
Junior gold miner Hummingbird Resources taps up fund manager Fidelity August 12, 2016 Aim-listed gold miner Hummingbird Resources has tapped fund manager Fidelity for $4m (£30.86m) as part of its latest funding round. Hummingbird said today that it's placed 11.1m new shares at 26p each. Investor interest has been stirred by a near 30 per cent jump in bullion prices this year. This comes after a £45.8m fundraising earlier this year, which bought [...]
Fresh wave of North Sea oil strikes suspended as talks restart August 12, 2016 A third round of strikes on Shell's North Sea platforms have been suspended to restart talks between Wood Group and trade unions. A series of strikes had been planned by workers of oil services firm Wood Group on Shell's Curlew, Brent Alpha, Brent Bravo, Nelson, Gannet, Shearwater, Brent Charlie platforms between 15 August and 3 September. [...]
Eurozone growth rate halves in second quarter as GDP expands by 0.3 per cent August 12, 2016 The Eurozone grew by 0.3 per cent in the second quarter of the year, as a slowdown in both France and Germany weighed on economic performance. The single currency bloc had surprised analysts with a bumper 0.6 per cent expansion in the first three months of the year, but zero growth in France and only [...]