What impact will the New York storm have on Hiscox? November 5, 2012 NICK JOHNSON | NUMIS We recently upgraded our net tangible asset forecast by two per cent to assume zero hurricane losses. We would expect this to reverse with the inclusion Sandy losses. The impact may ultimately be somewhat offset by stronger than expected investment earnings. BEN COHEN | CANACCORD GENUITY We expect consensus to review [...]
SFO’s tip-off service nets no investigations July 25, 2013 THE SERIOUS Fraud Office has had its hands full in the last year. From Libor to ENRC to GSK, a dizzying array of acronyms has built up in its in-tray. So it’s laudable that the SFO took the time this week to email in about a story City A.M. ran in March on the organisation’s [...]
A Christmas quiz on the strange puzzle of recessions and unemployment December 18, 2012 IN THE holiday spirit, I’ve decided to run a quiz at the end of this column. I’m offering a bottle of champagne to the winner, and I’ll make the draw from correct entries on 31 December. A quiz about the economy is appropriate because there are so many puzzles about the subject. In the current [...]
Londoners upbeat as the city again defies housing downturn September 10, 2012 LONDON bucked a national downward housing trend once again in August, according to a report released today by RICS. The rosy figures appear to justify Londoners’ optimism, compared to the gloom in the rest of the country, which was recorded yesterday by a YouGov poll. The net house price balance was -19 in August, up [...]
Silver surfers prepare to leave gold bugs behind as they ride the wave September 25, 2012 FOLLOWING recent policy announcements from the Federal Reserve, European Central Bank (ECB) and the Bank of Japan, making an investment case for metals may not be original. But, with rallies off lows in June, some may prefer silver over gold. It can be argued that silver has more scope to regain its record high, as [...]
Great boost to the economy – but public still feeling pain October 25, 2012 IT is not every day that the British economy gives us cause to celebrate, so we should all make the most of yesterday’s excellent third quarter GDP growth figures. The economy bounced back by one per cent compared with the second quarter, which was very good going by any measure. The figures need to be [...]
Fiscal crisis continues to threaten our struggling economy September 25, 2012 IT is hard to disagree with Standard & Poor’s that the Eurozone is likely to see zero growth until 2014. The situation is worsening again, especially in Spain, where the budget crisis is intensifying amid separationist tensions, and in Greece, which could soon be demoted to being an emerging market again by the FTSE. None [...]
Businesses see only woe over coming months July 30, 2012 BUSINESSES harbour anxiety about coming months, based on worries about a shrinking UK economy and worldwide economic distress, according to surveys out today. Corporate business sentiment on the economy was roundly negative in July, at minus eight per cent, though four points higher than June’s minus twelve reading, according to the Lloyds Bank business barometer. [...]
Manufacturers see renewed export growth May 7, 2012 MANUFACTURERS are increasingly upbeat about their growth prospects, forecasting rising output and export orders, two new studies showed today. Seventy per cent of manufacturers expect orders to rise this year, with 50 per cent forecasting increasing exports to emerging economies, according to industry body EEF. The EEF believes this should help the weak economic recovery [...]
George Osborne’s latest tax U-turn is a great Jubilee present May 31, 2012 FOR charities and their donors, including many in the City, George Osborne’s latest and most spectacular u-turn comes as a perfect Jubilee weekend present. The Chancellor had announced in the Budget a limit of £50,000 or 25 per cent of income, whichever was higher, on the amount individuals could donate in a tax-deductible fashion; the [...]