One chart showing how BP’s share price never recovered from the Deepwater Horizon disaster July 3, 2015 On the evening of 20 April 2010, a release of gasses at BP's Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico caused an explosion which ripped through the rig, killing 11 workers and causing an oil leak which continued for 87 days. By the end of the disaster, 3.2m barrels of oil had leaked [...]
UK universities with the most graduates in employment and/or further study July 3, 2015 We're typically told it's industries such as computing and finance are hungriest for new graduates – but a new study has found the graduates coming out of arts specialist Arts University Bournemouth are the UK's most employable. In fact, no Russell Group university – which represents the 24 leading UK universities including traditionally "red brick" institutions such [...]
RBS share price falls as it could face $13bn penalty over mortgage-backed securities July 3, 2015 Royal Bank of Scotland has been told it could face a $13bn (£8.3bn) bill over its behaviour before the 2008 crisis, causing shares to fall 2.1 per cent in mid-morning trading. The 79 per cent taxpayer-owned bank is involved in a long running case in a Connecticut court over how it packaged mortgage bonds and [...]
BP closes Deepwater Horizon oil spill chapter with £12bn record US payout: Firm may now be subject to mega takeover July 2, 2015 Oil giant BP has settled a massive lawsuit surrounding the 2010 Deepwater Horizon accident, agreeing yesterday to pay up to $18.7bn (£12bn) in respect of US federal, state and local claims connected with the disaster. The payout, believed to be the largest environmental fine ever handed out, comprises $5.5bn in civil payments, $4.9bn in [...]
Fellow watchdog to slam Ofgem over tariffs policy July 2, 2015 The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is expected to slam Ofgem’s policy on electricity tariffs when it publishes the preliminary findings from its energy market review next week. The report, which is likely to be released on 7 July, will highlight the “four tariffs” rule that Ofgem imposes on energy firms as being bad for [...]
IMF: Greece needs debt reduction due to poor recent governance July 2, 2015 One of Greece’s official creditors has acknowledged that the country needs debt relief, but only due to the choices of its current leadership elected in January. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said yesterday that Greece would need more than €50bn (£36bn) in financing by the end of 2018, as well as a doubling in the length [...]
UK house prices: First-time home buyers priced out of market July 2, 2015 Annual house price growth has slowed to a two-year low, according to a major mortgage provider. But months of fast growth has left first-time buyers struggling to put deposits together, despite government programmes to help them. House prices were 3.3 per cent higher in June than in the same month last year, Nationwide said. It [...]
London planning permission approvals for new houses soar July 2, 2015 A surge in planning approvals for new houses in London has lifted the prospects for building. London boroughs granted planning permission to 11,870 homes during the first three months of the year, estate agent Stirling Ackroyd said today. If that rate continued, 47,460 homes would be given planning permission this year. [...]
Persimmon reports jump in sales July 2, 2015 Housebuilder Persimmon has posted a jump in sales for the first half of the year, boosted by a pick-up in consumer confidence following the General Election. Legal completions increased by seven per cent to 6,855 new homes, while total revenue surged by 12 per cent to £1.34bn in the six months to 30 June. [...]
China in the throes of investment fever: Ordinary Chinese gripped by buzz of stock market speculation July 2, 2015 Three years ago China was in the grip of a walnut investing bubble. In an episode akin to 17th century tulip mania, wealthy Chinese paid up to £3,000 (¥30,000) for a pair of walnuts which cost £36 (¥350) several years prior. In the belief that rolling a nut in the palm of the hand [...]