Sir Richard Branson mouths off over being forced to wear a tie July 3, 2014 You’d imagine being a billionaire would mean never having to do something you really don’t want to do. If you don’t want to eat your greens, consider them gone. If you really dislike pairing socks, there’s someone else can do that for you. But it seems the UK’s favourite billionaire Sir Richard Branson [...]
Federal Reserve’s chair Janet Yellen stays firm on low interest rates July 2, 2014 Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen yesterday stuck by the US central bank’s loose monetary policy, reiterating her view that regulation should be the key tool used to combat financial stability risks. She argued that interest rates should seldom be used to combat risks to financial stability and that doing so to counter the US housing [...]
Mike Ashley finally lands bonus after shareholder backlash July 2, 2014 Sports Direct founder Mike Ashley has been awarded a bonus after 60 per cent of shareholders approved plans to let Mr Ashley share in a bonus scheme of up to £200m between the retailer's employees and management. However, 40 per cent of shareholders opposed the move, which was the company's third attempt in two years [...]
JP Morgan chairman Jamie Dimon diagnosed with throat cancer July 2, 2014 Jamie Dimon, the chief executive and chairman of JP Morgan Chase, has been diagnosed with a curable form of throat cancer. Dimon, 58, will now undergo an eight-week course of radiation and chemotherapy treatments. He indicated in a note to shareholders and staff that the cancer had been caught early and was considered curable by [...]
Directors join row over Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct bonus July 1, 2014 British directors yesterday slammed Sports Direct’s plans to hand founder Mike Ashley a multimillion-pound share bonus, which this morning is facing a crunch shareholder vote. The Institute of Directors’ rare attack on Sports Direct criticised “weak governance” from the company’s board over the pay plans. But the retailer last night remained confident of passing the [...]
JP Morgan’s Jamie Dimon has throat cancer July 1, 2014 Chief executive of JP Morgan Jamie Dimon has curable throat cancer, according to reports in the US late last night. “The cancer was caught quickly, and my condition is curable,” Dimon told investors and staff in a note, explaining that he will now face eight weeks of radiation and chemotherapy treatment to tackle the disease. [...]
Mark Carney’s first year: Bank governor enjoys roaring recovery – but he can’t take credit July 1, 2014 Mark Carney has had a spectacularly good first 365 days at Threadneedle Street. Since he's arrived at the Bank of England the UK economy has busted analyst growth expectations. Unemployment has fallen faster than almost anyone had predicted, and inflation is now back below the Bank's two per cent target. Judged by cold hard results, [...]
CNBC Comment: Why Draghi can’t relax this summer June 30, 2014 WHO’D be a central banker? As soon as you restore bond and equity markets to calm or even optimism, investors start fretting about something else. Most major Western economies have returned to economic growth, and countries that were causing sleepless nights just a couple of years ago, like Spain and Ireland, appear to be market [...]
Cameron “can do business with Juncker” following EU defeat June 30, 2014 Prime Minister David Cameron has said that he can do business with Jean-Claude Juncker, the newly appointed President of the European Commission. In the run up to last week's election at the European Council meeting, David Cameron had been against the appointment of the ex-Luxembourg Prime Minister, expressing concern that his desire for a closer [...]
Higher core Eurozone inflation may allow ECB to “wait and see” June 30, 2014 Inflation in the euro area has held steady in June, static at an annual rate of 0.5 per cent, according to data released by Eurostat. Fears over the disinflationary climate in the Eurozone prompted the European Central Bank (ECB) to take action this month, with president Mario Draghi delivering a package of measures aimed at [...]