China iron ore imports hit second-highest level on record August 8, 2016 China's ravenous appetite for raw materials helped its iron ore imports hit their second-highest level on record last month. Demand for the key steel-making ingredient rose as Chinese steel mills fired up furnaces on the back of higher prices. It comes in the midst of a European steel crisis, which has prompted Tata Steel to reconsider [...]
The pound has not been so sterling after Brexit: How currency weakness will hit our travel plans, inflation and trade August 8, 2016 The pound has been steadily falling as the Brexit referendum and Bank of England’s moves to shore up the economy have pushed investors into selling the pound. Its downward slide over the last 12 months means sterling is now worth 16 per cent less against the dollar, at £1/$1.31, compared to £1/$1.56 previously. It’s even [...]
FTSE 100 charges towards 14-month high as miners gains August 8, 2016 The FTSE 100 charged higher this morning, as miners clambered towards the top of the index. It was 0.46 per cent higher to 6,822.53 points this morning, after hitting a one-year high on Friday. It had been buoyed by a BoE interest rate cut, £70bn of additional quantitative easing and a new round of cheap loans which could pump £100bn of [...]
As calls for the chancellor to apply some fiscal stimulus grow, do we really want more public spending? August 8, 2016 Scott Corfe, director at the Centre for Economics and Business Research, says Yes. The UK economy is set to slow drastically over the coming quarters, with the Centre for Economics and Business Research expecting GDP growth to decline from about 1.5 per cent this year to less than 0.5 per cent in 2017. A recession – [...]
Brits flash the plastic despite EU vote fears August 8, 2016 Card spending in the UK climbed in July as consumers flocked to hotels, bars, and restaurants. The latest Visa spending index was up from 0.9 per cent year-on-year in June to 1.6 per cent in July. However this was weaker than the rate of increase seen at the beginning of the year. The hospitality industry drove [...]
London businesses hardest hit in latest PMI figures as employment falls August 8, 2016 London businesses were harder hit after the EU referendum result than those in any other UK regions, a newly released index has revealed. The Lloyds Bank Regional Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) also found employment in the capital fell in July, ending a 38-month period of expansion. “The local economy felt a significant downturn following the EU [...]
Simples: Comparethemarket.com owner chooses banks to oversee stock meerkat float August 7, 2016 The owner of Comparethemarket.com has appointed two Wall Street banks to oversee its £2bn-plus London flotation plans. BGL Group is aiming to launch an initial public offering (IPO) in the first quarter of 2017, with JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley now working on the float. Read more: Meet the companies that have ignored London's EU [...]
The number of people visiting France has fallen August 7, 2016 The number of people visiting France from abroad has fallen in the wake of terrorist attacks in the country. Tourism minister Matthias Fekl said the number of foreign visitors has declined by 10 per cent in the first six months of the year, compared to the same time last year, and that trend continued into July. The capital [...]
This German unicorn tech startup could IPO as soon as next year August 7, 2016 Food delivery startup Delivery Hero could go public as soon as next year, its chief executive has revealed. The German startup, a so-called unicorn valued at more than $1bn, could IPO next year but is in "no hurry" and can wait for the right conditions. "Whether it will happen next year? It is quite possible," said [...]
Why slashed interest rates could provide another M&A boost after Brexit August 5, 2016 UK deal activity could be boosted by the Bank of England’s interest rates cut, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) experts have suggested. As well as cutting interest rates from 0.5 to 0.25 per cent on Thursday, the Bank’s monetary policy committee (MPC) also unleashed an extension of quantitative easing which could pump an extra £170bn of newly-printed [...]