China: Why US tapering won’t affect it and 5 other things December 18, 2013 As we head towards the new year, JP Morgan analyst Haibin Zhu looks ahead to the Chinese economic outlook for 2014. Where is China’s growth heading in 2014? The investment bank expects the Chinese economy to decelerate from 7.6 per cent in 2013 to 7.4 per cent in 2014. It believes that a shift in government [...]
Bitcoin faces second wave of regulation December 18, 2013 China has announced a fresh wave of regulation for the use of the virtual currency Bitcoin. Bitcoin exchanges will be blocked from accepting new inflows of cash. Exchanges such as BTC China, the world's largest Bitcoin marketplace will no longer be able to accept renminbi from potential buyers. Third party payment companies have been instructed [...]
Germany’s Merkel wants an even bigger European Union December 18, 2013 Germany's chancellor Angela Merkel isn't going to be gaining many friends in the UK today. While the UK's politicians offer promises of potential European Union reform in a pro-market direction, Merkel's new motto for the political union may as well be "oversight, oversight, oversight". She wants more European Union integration – that's her declared focus [...]
What you need to know before the open – 18/12 December 18, 2013 Today is the day the Fed's Open Market Committee makes a decision on whether to trim back its quantitative easing programme. The tapering debate has rattled on for almost eight months now, with uncertainty persistently subduing the markets. Robust economic data has left many questioning the likelihood of a December (as opposed to a March [...]
Supermarkets slump as half of UK shoppers head to discounters December 17, 2013 FOR THE first time ever, more than half of the UK shopped in either an Aldi or Lidl in the last three months, putting pressure on bigger retailers as the shift toward discount shopping continues unabated. Sales at Aldi surged by 30.7 per cent in the 12 weeks to 8 December while its smaller discount rival [...]
Diamond backs new venture with own cash December 17, 2013 BOB DIAMOND’S latest venture raised $325m (£200m) from investors yesterday, around $100m more than initially expected. The former Barclays boss has stumped up $16m of his own cash, invested through a company he owns, to set up Atlas Mara. He has joined forces with African billionaire Ashish Thakkar, who has also provided $4m of funding. [...]
Auditors say sale of stake in Lloyds lost UK £200m December 17, 2013 THE TAXPAYER lost £200m on its first sale of Lloyds shares instead of making a profit as initially claimed, official auditors said today, because the government’s sums did not take account of the cost of borrowing money to bail the bank out. September’s sale of 4.3bn shares brought in £3.2bn and outweighed the amount paid [...]
Bonuses clipped by shareholder spring activism December 17, 2013 BONUSES for top executives at the UK’s biggest public companies dropped in the last financial year, as the effect of 2012’s shareholder spring rolled on. According to research revealed by EY today, bonuses for chief executive officers in FTSE 100 firms dropped 5.2 per cent in 2012-13, compared to their levels in the previous financial [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 18 December 2013 December 17, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES French seek EU defence fund Plunged into its second African military mission in under a year, France is showing increasing frustration at what it sees as a lack of spine among European partners on defence issues. In an effort to put its allies on the spot, President François Hollande is poised to demand, [...]
Bank to announce on new notes December 17, 2013 The Bank of England is expected to push forward plans to move to polymer bank-notes today, as the public consultation over the change comes to an end. The Bank floated the idea earlier in the year, and assessed public views at events around the country. The new material may come into use for new £5 [...]