Goldman Sachs warns US government shutdown will hit growth September 30, 2013 Goldman Sachs has warned that a two day shutdown of the US Federal government could reduce fourth quarter GDP (annualised) by 0.1 percentage points, and that a shutdown as long as one week could see GDP take a 0.3 percentage point hit. Over the weekend Republicans in the House of Representatives passed a [...]
Mortgage numbers rise to February 2008 highs September 30, 2013 Mortgage numbers have swelled in the UK this August – hitting 66-month highs. They're up from 60,624 to 62,226 in a single month, above analyst estimates of a rise to 61,500. That's before the accelerated second stage of Help to Buy even kicks in. Yet at 62,226, mortgage approvals stand at 73.5 per cent of [...]
BP oil spill trial continues with question of how much oil was lost September 30, 2013 Oil giant BP is due today to begin the second phase of the civil trial over its 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. The Deepwater Horizon rig explosion killed 11 workers and blackened hundreds of miles of beaches. Today, the debate will be on how much oil was spilt. The US government will argue that, [...]
Cost of CO2 regulation provides auto suppliers with new opportunities September 30, 2013 Analysts at Macquarie Equities Research have concluded that the global trend of tougher regulation on carbon dioxide emissions is producing significant cost for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and consumers in the automotive sector, but is creating revenue opportunities for supplier industries. The EU has the strictest emissions standards, which has lead to European consumers seeing the highest [...]
Aldi sees a doubling of annual profits and a 40.6 per cent leap in sales September 30, 2013 Budget supermarket Aldo has announced a 40.6 per cent increase in sales last year, rising to £3.8bn, with profit doubling from £70.5m to £157.9m, moving away from the pack of other UK supermarkets in terms of growth. With a growing middle class clientele and one million extra customers coming through the doors of its 500 [...]
Astra Zeneca given new ovarian cancer drug go-ahead by regulator September 30, 2013 Biopharmaceutical company Astra Zeneca has had a marketing authorisation application accepted for a new ovarian cancer drug. The oral drug, Olaparib, kills cancer cells and has the potential to be used to treat a range of tumours. The granting of the application by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) means that it can be put on [...]
What you need to know before the open – 30/9 September 30, 2013 If you thought things might look a little less bumpy for the markets this week – not so. Today, they look set to be battered by US and Italian politics, with the FTSE expected to open sharply lower and Asian markets closing down on concerns. Opening calls #FTSE100 is expected to open 63 points lower [...]
Tories alone on home loan plan September 29, 2013 DAVID Cameron yesterday announced that a controversial scheme offering taxpayer-subsidised mortgages will launch this week, without consulting his coalition partners and despite mounting criticism that he is stoking a new housing bubble. The second part of Help to Buy, which will enable buyers to purchase a house with a deposit of just five per cent, [...]
Osborne set to make benefit rules tougher September 29, 2013 GEORGE Osborne will today announce that the long-term unemployed will have to undertake community work or risk losing their welfare payments. The chancellor will tell the Conservative conference that from next April “no one will get something for nothing”. As a result, tens of thousands of jobseekers will forced to undertake 30 hours of service [...]
Cameron puts European rights law on notice September 29, 2013 DAVID Cameron yesterday indicated that he is ready to pledge to abolish the Human Rights Act in the Conservatives’ manifesto for the 2015 general election. The Prime Minister said he would do “whatever that takes” to ensure Britain can deport foreign criminals that the government believes pose a threat to national security, including replacing the [...]