EU referendum: British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) and Confederation of British Industry (CBI) put pressure on David Cameron ahead of EU summit December 17, 2015 Britain's biggest business groups are putting pressure on Prime Minister David Cameron today as he heads to Brussels for a two-day meeting of European Union leaders. British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) director-general John Longworth said the summit “may prove a tipping point” in Cameron’s efforts to secure EU reforms. “Many business leaders are judging the [...]
Fed rate hike reactions: How analysts responded to Janet Yellen’s interest rate rise December 16, 2015 The Federal Reserve’s move to raise its short-term interest rate from its historically low near-zero levels was widely expected by economists, but not everyone welcomed the first hike in close to a decade. Attacking the Fed’s move as “premature”, CEBR economists were critical of the central bank’s move to “fight non-existent inflation”: “The Fed is [...]
City Moves for 17 December 2015 | Who’s switching jobs December 16, 2015 L&G Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM) Real Assets has announced the appointment of Tony Doherty as head of product development in its business development team. Tony takes over from Dan Batterton who has moved into the new role of build-to-rent fund manager . Prior to joining LGIM Real Assets, Tony spent 15 years at [...]
Hawk dressed as dove helps index rise up – New York Report December 16, 2015 Investors took advantage of the Federal Reserve’s “Santa Clause” hike in interest rates yesterday to pull Wall Street higher. The 25 basis points rise was seen as a vote of confidence in the US economy. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 224.18 points, or 1.28 per cent, to 17,749.09, the S&P 500 gained [...]
Federal Reserve interest rate decision: What did the world look like in 2006, the last time the Fed hiked rates? December 16, 2015 We finally have lift-off. The Federal Reserve have raised short-term interest rates for the first time in close to a decade, signalling the US economy has returned to health after the financial crisis. But what did the world look like in June 2006, the last time a Fed rate hike happened? If you don’t remember, [...]
You can now hail an Uber from Facebook Messenger December 16, 2015 Uber has teamed up with Facebook Messenger, meaning you can now hail a cab directly from the chat app. The question is what you can’t do through the chat app at this point, as Facebook has already added features allowing you to shop and send money to your friends from within the app. In a [...]
Top MPs ask for assurance on the sale of Northern Rock assets December 16, 2015 A group of senior MPs has asked for more details on what the sale of assets of Northern Rock mean to those with mortgages from the failed bank. A US private equity group, Cerberus Capital Management, bought the government’s £13bn portfolio of Northern Rock mortgages in November. Andrew Tyrie MP, chairman of the Treasury Select [...]
Oil price stable following Fed interest rate hike December 16, 2015 The price of oil was stable following the expected US Federal Reserve decision to raise interest rates by 0.25 percentage points. Fed chair Janet Yellen said: “I have been surprised by the further downward movement in oil prices. Oil prices need to stabilise for inflation to move up.” The oil price has been falling since Saudi [...]
US Federal Reserve hikes interest rates for first time in nine years but stresses future hikes will be gradual December 16, 2015 The US central bank has raised interest rates for the first time since 2006. The Federal Reserve lifted its main policy rates 0.25 percentage points, its first hike in nine years and its first interest rate change since 2008. The target range for the federal funds rate is now 0.25 to 0.5 per cent. The dot plots, which show [...]
Fed rate hike reactions: The best Twitter responses to Janet Yellen’s big move December 16, 2015 What to do when the Federal Reserve has raised interest rates from a historic low for the first time in nearly a decade, in a bill of health for the US economy? Why, take to Twitter, of course. Read more: What the world looked like the last time the Fed hiked rates The social media [...]