Lord Blackwell appointed as Lloyds chairman December 2, 2013 Lloyds banking group has announced the appointment of Lord Blackwell as chairman of the group, with effect from 3 April 2014. Blackwell replaces Sir Winfried Bischoff in his role at the state-backed bank. Blackwell has been a non-executive director of the group since June 2012, and is a member of its audit and risk committees. [...]
HS2 could be latest UK project to see Chinese investment December 2, 2013 HS2 could see funding from China, it's emerged, as Li Keqiang made a surprise announcement whilst holding a joint news conference with David Cameron in Beijing. The Chinese premier said that the two countries have reached agreement when it comes to co-operating on nuclear power, too. “The two sides have agreed to push for a [...]
EU hammers Chinese solar panels with new tariffs December 2, 2013 The European Union has confirmed that it will be imposing duties on Chinese solar panels that will apply for two years starting 6 December 2013. The Commission also confirmed its decision to accept the undertaking with Chinese solar panel exporters applied at the beginning of March. The Commission said in a press release: The imposition [...]
The S&P 500 is on its longest winning streak in over a decade December 2, 2013 As US markets continue to enjoy the Fed's quantitative easing, the S&P 500 has risen for eight consecutive weeks in the aftermath of the temporary government shutdown. S&P rises for 8 weeks in a row, its longest winning streak in a decade. — Jamie McGeever (@ReutersJamie) December 2, 2013 Fed chairman Ben Bernanke shocked [...]
PlayStation 4 becomes fastest selling console in UK history December 2, 2013 Sony's latest console offering, the PlayStation 4 (PS4), has stripped the mobile PSP platform of its title as the UK's fastest selling console. The PSP held that record for eight years, according to GfK Chart-Track. That device saw early sales of 185,000 units when released in 2005. Sony enjoyed more than 1m of PS4 sales [...]
France seeks to liberalise draconian Sunday trading laws December 2, 2013 A government commissioned report released on Monday has recommended a partial liberalisation of France's notoriously strict Sunday trading laws. The report, written by former head of La Poste Jean-Paul Bailly recommends increasing the number of Sundays mayors can authorise trading from five to twelve. A review of current laws was also recommended to resolve confusion [...]
E.ON warns that rising wholesale prices lie out of its and the government’s control December 2, 2013 Energy company E.ON has said this morning that it won't be raising its prices over the next 18 months, provided wholesale prices and network costs don't go up. It stressed, however, that prices and costs "may rise", and pointed out that neither it nor the government can control them. In a statement today, [...]
UK manufacturing grows at fastest rate in nearly three years December 2, 2013 The UK's manufacturing outlook is at its best in 33 months in November, according to purchasing managers' index (PMI) data compiled by Markit. Jeremy Cook, chief economist at World First, notes that industry has "managed to shrug off the impact of both a stronger pound and a resumption of economic worries in the Eurozone, our [...]
How today’s price cuts stack up with winter energy rises December 2, 2013 A bevy of figures has been announced this morning as the energy firms respond to the government's pledge to cut green levies, in a bid to ease the impact of energy bill hikes. The move comes as part of a package of measures announced over the weekend. It also follows the coalition denial that it had [...]
EDF pledges price freeze for 2014 December 2, 2013 EDF Energy was the first energy firm to announce a price freeze yesterday, with fellow Big Six firms British Gas, SSE and Npower announcing cuts this morning. The pledges come in response to the government's commitment to waive the cost of some green levies, which are currently paid for through energy bills. EDF said it doesn't [...]