What the other papers say this morning – 22 October 2013 October 21, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Bundesbank warns on apartments The Bundesbank has warned that apartment prices in Germany’s biggest cities could be overvalued by as much as 20 per cent, stepping up its concern about a real estate boom there. Obama admits botched health launch Barack Obama, who forged his political career by harnessing the power of the [...]
Dimon defies JP Morgan critics October 21, 2013 JP Morgan’s boss Jamie Dimon yesterday insisted he is “damn proud” of the bank, despite the $13bn (£8bn) mortgage-related settlement which it is believed to have agreed with US regulators. “I am so damn proud of this company,” the bank’s chairman and chief executive told CNBC. “That’s what I think about when I wake up every [...]
Warren Buffett slashes Tesco stake October 21, 2013 Investment guru Warren Buffett has sold more than £300m of his stake in Tesco, a stock market filing showed yesterday. That amounts to around one-fifth of his investment group Berkshire Hathaway’s holding in the supermarket chain. It comes just two weeks after Tesco reported a 68 per cent fall in mainland Europe profits in the [...]
Shell wins Brazilian oil bidding October 21, 2013 A group of firms including Shell, Brazil’s Petrobras, Total, and China’s CNPC and CNOOC yesterday won a 35-year production contract to develop the Libra discovery off Brazil. But the bidding round was marred by protests as around 300 protesters clashed with security forces. Some of those opposed to the deal include oil workers who have been [...]
Q&A: the Hinkley Point deal in full October 21, 2013 Q Why do we need more nuclear power? A Britain’s energy security is at risk. Network operator National Grid recently warned that the country is at its highest risk of blackouts this winter in five years. Nuclear energy is one (albeit costly) way of diversifying and reducing our reliance on gas imports. Britain also needs [...]
Co-op loses control of its bank in new rescue deal October 21, 2013 THE CO-OP will lose control of its banking unit in a new deal set to be unveiled in the coming days, after investors pushed the troubled group for more of the bank’s ownership. The bank has to plug a £1.5bn capital hole, with £1bn coming from the group and £500m from hitting investors. As part [...]
Npower defends plan to increase bills by 10.4pc October 21, 2013 NPOWER yesterday became the third of the big six suppliers to raise its energy prices, as it unveiled a 10.4 per cent increase to the average gas and electricity bill. The price hike will take effect from 1 December and equates to an extra £137 per year for dual fuel customers. The energy firm’s increase [...]
Netflix surprises market with surge in subscriber numbers October 21, 2013 FILM and TV streaming service Netflix saw profits rocket in the third quarter as subscriber numbers increased more quickly than expected. Another 2.7m customers signed up globally in the three-month period pushing revenues up to $1.1bn (£681m), up 22 per cent on the $905m brought in during the same period of 2012. The rising revenues pushed [...]
Oil prices fall on expanding US stockpiles October 21, 2013 US CRUDE oil prices yesterday tumbled below the psychologically important $100 (£61.95) per barrel mark for the first time since July, as stockpiles built up more rapidly than expected. Seasonal refinery maintenance and shifting pipeline flows around the key Cushing, Oklahoma, oil hub have helped reverse a months-long decline in stockpiles, dramatically shifting the oil [...]
States blocked from tweaking EU’s stress tests October 21, 2013 ALL MAJOR European banks must be tested in exactly the same way if the stress tests are to be worthwhile, the European Banking Authority (EBA) said yesterday. The agency warned that using different rules in different countries will make it impossible to compare the strength of banks across the EU, and undermine faith in the [...]