US manufacturing sector strengthens on shipments and new orders November 26, 2013 The US manufacturing industry looked more upbeat in November, with the Richmond Fed manufacturing index coming in at 13, up from 1 in October and sailing past the expectation of 3. Shipments and the volume of new orders both rose over the month, with employment, average workweek and wages also picking up. Capacity utilization [...]
Portugal approves budget for 2014 amidst austerity protests November 26, 2013 On Tuesday Portuguese law makers passed a budget for 2014. Many of the measures contained in the budget have proved controversial such as increasing the time of the working week in the public sector from 35 hours to 40 hours. During the pre-vote debate trade unionists protested in front of the parliament demanding an end [...]
RBS to spin off stake in third-party investment arm November 26, 2013 In a continued effort to consolidate its non-core businesses, RBS is in talks to spin off one of its last-remaining investment arms, reports Sky News' City editor Mark Kleinman. The RBS Special Opportunities Fund (SOF) could be handed over to the lender's management team, with a deal finalised by the end of the year. The [...]
US house prices soar by over 13 per cent in just a year November 26, 2013 US house prices are climbing fast – up 13.3 per cent in the year to September according to the S&P/Case Shiller index. That's well above the 13 per cent increase that analysts had been expecting. On this side of the pond, house prices increases are more moderate – at least at the national level. They [...]
Unions and Royal Mail extend deadline for talks November 26, 2013 Recently privatised Royal Mail and the Communication Workers Union (CWU) have extended the deadline for an agreement on workers pay and conditions to 3 December. The parties said there had been progress in reaching a deal on pensions and working conditions. Dave Ward, deputy secretary general of the CWU, said: We are confident that negotiations [...]
US building permits jump to their highest level in almost 5.5 years – but markets don’t budge November 26, 2013 Construction in the US is soaring, with permits at their highest levels in nearly five-and-a-half years. Permits rose 6.2 per cent to an annualised pace of 1.03m in October. Analysts had expected an increase to just 0.93m. Paul Diggle of Capital Economics attributed the jump to the strong and often volatile multi-family sector, but said [...]
French downgrade was unjustified says IMF chief economist November 26, 2013 The IMF's chief economist, Olivier Blanchard has said that France's recent credit downgrade by Standard & Poor's (S&P) was unjustified. Speaking to German newspaper, Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Mr Blanchard, said: Even if France hasn't fully recovered yet, I don't see any substantial risk — or even an increased risk — that it won't be able to [...]
Tiffany’s sparkling results see jeweller raise forecast again November 26, 2013 Tiffany & Co saw third quarter net earnings surge 50 per cent to $95m (£58.7m), beating the Wall Street prediction of $74.9m (£46.3m) and leading to the company raising its annual earnings forecast for the second time in three months. The world's second-largest jeweller was boosted by growing sales in Asia, where they soared 27 per [...]
Irish unemployment falls to lowest point since 2009 November 26, 2013 Ireland's unemployment rate has fallen to a four year low, according to the Central Statistics Office. The seasonally adjusted rate fell from 13.6 per cent in the second quarter, to 12.8 per cent in the third quarter. Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Joan Burton, said: More than 1,000 people a week are returning to [...]
Advertising giants appeal to EU regulators to grant merger November 26, 2013 Advertising companies Omnicom and Publicis have urged European Union (EU) regulators to approve their $31bn (£22bn) merger. Omnicom and Publicis are the world's second and third largest advertising firms respectively, as such they will need to clear the hurdles of EU antitrust laws before proceeding with the deal. The merger agreed in July has been [...]