Mortgage loans plummet as tax break expires May 21, 2012 MORTGAGE lending plunged in April after the stamp duty holiday expired, industry data showed yesterday, while economists warned the underlying state of the housing market is weakening. Gross mortgage lending slumped from £12.6bn in March to £10.2bn in April – a 19 per cent fall to an 11-month low, according to data from the Council [...]
Active shareholders tie top pay to results May 21, 2012 EXECUTIVES’ pay is increasingly linked to the performance of the companies they manage, according to a wide-ranging economic study published yesterday that dismissed public worries over “rewards for failure”. “Today’s correlation between pay and performance is driven by bonuses and other incentive packages, which have become more important in recent years,” the Centre for Economic [...]
G8 downbeat over recovery May 21, 2012 PEOPLE in the G8 countries have become more pessimistic over economic prospects, according to a study seen today by City A.M. A mere 14 per cent of people across the G8 expect their countries’ economies to be stronger in six months time, an international poll by Ipsos MORI has showed. Two years ago, this figure [...]
Firms call for superfast internet May 21, 2012 ROLLING out superfast broadband to rural businesses will close the digital divide with cities and revitalise the rural economy, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) claimed yesterday. Its survey showed 63 per cent of small firms in rural areas are dissatisfied with the speed of their internet connection, compared with 48 per cent of businesses [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS May 21, 2012 DFJ Esprit The cross-stage venture capital firm has appointed Peter Keen as its a new venture partner, specialising in medtech and life science investments. Keen joins with 28 years’ experience in the sector. He was co-founder of Chriscience Group, chief financial officer of Arakis, and is currently non-executive director of Horizon Discovery and Q-Chip. Jefferies [...]
BEST of the BROKERS May 21, 2012 ITV Peel Hunt rates the broadcaster as a “hold” with a target price of 82p, saying that despite a bumper summer of sport it thinks positive sentiment around Euro 2012 is already priced in. The broker says the outlook for autumn and beyond is muted, but expects broadcasting revenue growth of 2.2 per cent. EADS [...]
FTSE up after week-long dip May 21, 2012 BRITAIN’S top share index halted a week-long slide yesterday, as investors stumped up the courage to buy in on the dips of badly beaten equities, although the murky outlook for global growth kept gains to a minimum. London’s blue chip index closed 36.86 points higher, or up 0.7 per cent at 5,304.48, having fallen 5.5 [...]
US stocks lift on Greek talks May 21, 2012 US stocks rose more than 1 per cent yesterday, with the S&P 500 snapping a six-day losing streak in a rebound from equities’ biggest weekly drop in almost six months, but Facebook slumped in its second session after a disappointing debut. Sentiment improved after G8 leaders gave verbal backing for Greece to stay in the [...]
Blanket immunity for developing nations has stifled climate hopes May 21, 2012 THIS week, diplomats in Bonn must face up to a crumbling international consensus on climate change. United Nations negotiations stalled in Durban last December. Japan, Russia and Canada recently joined the US by walking away from an extension of the Kyoto Protocol’s emission cutting targets – while China, Brazil and India weren’t bound in the [...]
Companies don’t pay taxes – but employees, owners and customers do May 21, 2012 THIS WEEK sees the launch of The Single Income Tax – the final report of the 2020 Tax Commission. As one of the commissioners, I’m proud of the result: a 417-page blockbuster of thorough analysis and sensible, yet radical, reforms. A Single Income Tax would ensure that taxes were cut to 33 per cent of [...]
