Annual German inflation drops to 1.4 per cent in September September 27, 2013 Price pressures seems to be broadly stable in German for this September. A preliminary estimate shows consumer price inflation at zero this month, as it was in the last. In the year to September, inflation stands at 1.4 per cent, slightly lower than the 1.5 per cent estimated. As in the wider Eurozone, inflation varies [...]
French court orders DIY shops to close on Sunday September 27, 2013 The companies affected were Castorama a subsidiary of Kingfisher with over 12,000 employees and 105 stores and Leroy Merlin 53,000 employees in 2010 and 300 stores. A total of 15 stores will be closed on Sunday in the Paris area. The case came to court due to a complaint by Bricorama, another DIY retailer which [...]
Government to receive £1.3bn from Royal Mail sale – but warns of coming strike action September 27, 2013 The government prospectus for the sale of 497-year old Royal Mail reveals that the state will take £1.3bn to £1.7bn from the sale. Fees will exceed £50m, with the government paying £28.5m and the Royal Mail itself a further £23m. Investors should … assume national strike action will take place during the period immediately after [...]
Chinese giant puffer fish tower causes angst September 27, 2013 In China, a 90-metre long sculpture-come-viewing tower that is shaped like a giant puffer fish has come under fire online. Encrusted in almost 9,000 copper scales, the 70m yuan (£7.1m) brass arrangement has prompted wrangling over government decadence. The fish is on an island in Yangzhong county, eastern Jiangsu province, and stands 15 storeys above [...]
JC Penney to end year with £830m cash before 84m share sell off September 27, 2013 JC Penney is to end the year with £830m cash, excluding the profits from the retailers 84m share sell off. The news was disclosed in a regulatory filing on Friday after a turbulent week for the troubled company. Last night JC Penney shares fell by 4.5 per cent in after-hours trading from previous [...]
British expansion is priority for Grafton September 27, 2013 Irish building supplies group Grafton has announced plans to prioritise its expansion in the UK. In an interview with Reuters, the chief executive Gavin Slark said that, once it switches its listings to London in October, the recovering British market will be the company's focal point for expansion. Last week, Grafton announced its move to [...]
Fed’s Evans says forward guidance has helped to boost growth September 27, 2013 The Fed's Charles Evans has said that forward guidance has helped to boost GDP growth while the central bank was unable to to cut short term interest rates. Evans believes that unemployment remains unacceptably high while headwinds continue to contribute to a weak economy. He said that the use of monetary policy to combat financial [...]
Carney says no longer case for QE September 27, 2013 Speaking optimistically about economic recovery Bank of England governor Mark Carney has said there's no case for more quantitative easing, in an interview with the Yorkshire Post today. Following the interview, the pound moved up swiftly against the dollar. More details and analysis available on the liveblog.
Eurozone economic confidence rises in September September 27, 2013 Confidence in the Eurozone economy is up overall, with the economic sentiment indicator at 96.9, up from 95.2 and the expectation of 96.0. But the European survey has had a mixed bag of results for September: Business climate missed the mark coming in at -0.2, following expectations it would be -0.1, which would have been [...]
UK productivity improves significantly in second quarter September 27, 2013 The graph shows whole economy output per worker in terms of percentage changes on theprevious quarter and on the previous year. Based on output per hour, UK labour productivity went up 0.5 per cent in the second quarter of 2013, having been flat in the first quarter. This was the first quarter on quarter increase [...]