Big government Britain isn’t working October 4, 2009 NEXT year, government spending in Britain will reach 54.1 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), up from 36.6 per cent in 2000. This devastating statistic, buried one the OECD’s website, has been largely overlooked; yet it is one of the most important facts that everybody should know about today’s Britain. It demonstrates that almost [...]
Labour lays out cuts plans October 4, 2009 CHANCELLOR Alistair Darling said yesterday he was having “robust” talks with other cabinet ministers over future spending cuts. He told the International Monetary Fund (IMF) the battle to reduce the deficit would require tough choices, but said Tory plans for immediate cuts risked “crashing the economy”. Speaking in Istanbul, he said Labour would continue to [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPER SAY THIS MORNING October 4, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMESBERMUDA LOOKS TO BECOME HUB FOR CAT BONDSBermuda is making a push to become a leading centre for catastrophe bonds and other forms of specialist insurance investment by creating a special type of regulatory regime. Matthew Elderfield, chief executive of the Bermuda Monetary Authority, expects the next wave of capital that enters the insurance [...]
Banks to defend dark pools October 4, 2009 The Investment Banking Association is today expected to reject claims from European stock exchanges that “dark pool” trading facilities have created an uneven playing field. It will argue that they provide a legitimate service and encourage liquidity in the market. Dark pools enable investors to trade large blocks of shares anonymously without prices being revealed [...]
Mittal set to pull out of deal October 4, 2009 Steel company ArcelorMittal is close to pulling out of a $20bn (£12.5bn) plan to build two steel plants in India due to difficulties buying land, its chairman and biggest shareholder Lakshmi Mittal said. Delays in persuading farmers and others to sell land for the development in the states of Jharkand and Orissa were holding up [...]
BAE prepared for fine October 4, 2009 DEFENCE giant BAE Systems is prepared to pay a record breaking fine over bribery allegations, sources close to the situation said yesterday, if “compelling evidence” indicates the charges against it are true. The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) said last week it wanted to prosecute Europe’s biggest defence contractor over allegations the firm used bribery and [...]
HSBCsells NYCoffice for $330m October 4, 2009 HSBC yesterday agreed to sell its New York headquarters to Israel’s Koor Industries and Property and Building for $330m (£207m). Koor and Property and Building are both subsidiaries of Israeli holding company IDB Holding, which said it would receive $45m in rental income in the first year while operating expenses will total $18.5m. The bank [...]
Barclays eyes Standard Life banking arm October 4, 2009 BARCLAYS is set to enter exclusive talks which could see it snap up Standard Life’s banking division, after rival suitors walked away. The bank, led by chief executive John Varley, is expected to be granted exclusivity by the insurer later this week after it expressed strong interest in the arm, which has been valued at [...]
OTC reforms to be softer October 4, 2009 FIRMS that trade in over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives look set to win an important exemption under plans to overhaul the market, according to draft legislation that is working its way through the US Congress. Lawmakers in the US had planned to introduce rules that would have seen all standardised OTC derivatives processed through clearing houses in [...]
Tucker proposes bank levy October 4, 2009 Bank of England deputy governor Paul Tucker yesterday said that a new levy should be in place to force banks to cough up for the cost of future crises . Tucker said that if the government is required to provide rescue funds in the future, there should be a system in place to force banks [...]
