India and Brazil pick up pace as exports boost output growth April 11, 2012 EMERGING economies expanded strongly in the first quarter, and have plenty of monetary and fiscal “ammunition” to bolster growth should it falter – in stark contrast to European economies, a report by HSBC argued yesterday. Manufacturing production accelerated in India and Brazil, and grew at a slightly slower pace in Russia, the study found, though [...]
Fed’s Beige Book lifts hopes for solid recovery across the States April 11, 2012 THE US economy is continuing to expand at a “modest to moderate pace,” the Federal Reserve reported last night, as the manufacturing, professional services and retail sectors all recorded strong growth. However, rising energy and fuel prices are beginning to worry producers and consumers, according to the Beige Book – a regular publication which analyses [...]
BoE says the direct debit system needs protection April 11, 2012 THE interbank payment systems which keep the country’s finances working might not be sufficiently well protected against banks going bust or the development of technical problems, a Bank of England report warned yesterday. For example, Bacs – the system that handled 5.6bn direct debit payments last year – could face a liquidity crisis if a [...]
Pressure on US banks to raise capital buffers April 11, 2012 TOP FED officials yesterday warned against the risks to financial stability posed by European debt and pushed for banks to hold more capital against future crises. Kansas City Federal Reserve president Esther George said the leverage ratio is one buffer in the financial system that is historically there to absorb losses, and that there must [...]
UK tries out real-time tax scheme April 11, 2012 A PILOT for a new real-time information system was launched by HM Revenue and Customs yesterday in an effort to cut down on over- and under-payments of income tax. The scheme is designed to reduce errors in the pay as you earn (PAYE) system when workers change jobs, which HMRC hopes will save employers £300m [...]
Australians worried on GDP outlook April 11, 2012 AUSTRALIAN consumers continue to have a pessimistic outlook on the economy despite positive indicators, according to a survey published yesterday. The Melbourne Institute index of consumer sentiment fell by 1.6 per cent in April to 94.5 points, following a five per cent drop in March. This is its lowest reading since last August, despite robust [...]
LOCKHART: NO NEED FOR MORE QE April 11, 2012 THE US economy remains fragile but things would have to get a lot worse for the Federal Reserve to launch another round of monetary stimulus, Atlanta Fed president Dennis Lockhart said yesterday. “I view it as a policy that would respond more to a fairly dramatic negative change of direction in the economy,” he said.
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS April 11, 2012 HIG Europe The private equity firm has announced that Carl Harring has joined its London office as a managing director. He arrives from HgCapital, where he led a number of small and medium-sized European leveraged buyouts. He previously spent nine years at Apax Partners. Optos The medical retinal imaging firm has announced that Louisa Burdett [...]
BEST of the BROKERS April 11, 2012 BT GROUP JP Morgan Cazenove has downgraded the telecoms group from “overweight” to “neutral” following a strong share price performance that has seen it rise by 20 per cent over six months, compared to a drop of five per cent across the European telecoms sector. The broker sees revenue risk in both the full year [...]
Attracting attention in your job hunt is a subtle science April 11, 2012 WHAT value is there in seeking attention? The practice has a bad reputation, known as part of the power-play of ill-disciplined little children. But in a competitive job market, where even the best must struggle to win over recruiters or potential employers, some argue that there’s virtue in trying to be noticed in the early [...]