BoE raises alarm over inflation April 18, 2012 Britain’s current high inflation may now be at greater risk of lasting into the medium term, the Bank of England warned, casting doubt on whether it will inject more economic stimulus next month. Minutes to the BoE’s April 4-5 meeting showed on Wednesday showed that a long-standing advocate of more quantitative easing, Adam Posen, had [...]
UK unemployment edges down April 18, 2012 The UK unemployment rate edged down in the three months to February, official statistics showed. The number of people without a job on the ILO measure fell by 35,000 in the three months to February to 2.65m, the Office for National Statistics said. The jobless rate fell to 8.3 per cent, compared with forecasts that [...]
GKN profit rise fuelled by automotive arm April 18, 2012 Car and plane parts maker GKN posted a 19 per cent rise in first-quarter profit, driven by a strong performance from its automotive business and acquisitions made last year. GKN reported a trading profit of £142m in the first three months of the year on revenues 17 per cent higher at £1.74bn. GKN reported a [...]
Panmure poaches Seymour Pierce’s Wale as new chief April 18, 2012 Panmure Gordon, one of several niche investment banks operating in the City of London finance district, has poached Phillip Wale from rival Seymour Pierce to be its new chief executive. Panmure said on Wednesday Wale would take up his new role this summer, with current CEO Tim Linacre becoming chairman of its investment banking arm. [...]
Tesco in £1bn plan to breathe new life into business April 18, 2012 Tesco said it would spend £1bn this year overhauling its underperforming UK business and will rein in expansion as it seeks to win back market share and calm nervous shareholders. It said that the blueprint to revitalise its most important market, which it conceded was not a radical change of direction, would focus on improving [...]
Banks plot to sue EU over bonuses April 17, 2012 Banks have hired lawyers to look into suing the EU if Brussels imposes new restrictions on bonuses that they say would wreck their businesses, City A.M. has learned. The Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME), an industry group representing banks across the continent, has brought in top law firm Clifford Chance to see whether [...]
Sage of Omaha Warren Buffett tells investors he has prostate cancer April 17, 2012 Warren Buffett, the world’s most famous investor and head of Berkshire Hathaway, has been diagnosed with prostate cancer. The 81-year-old told investors the stage one disease is “not remotely life-threatening or even debilitating in any meaningful way”. Buffett will begin two months of daily radiation doses in mid-July. He said treatment for the cancer – [...]
Spain slams Argentina for its move to seize oil firm April 17, 2012 SPAIN rounded on Argentina’s move to seize control of oil giant YPF yesterday, threatening swift economic retribution for the nationalisation plan. Spanish industry minister Jose Manuel Soria promised “consequences” in the coming days. “They will be in the diplomatic field, the industrial field, and on energy,” he said. And Repsol, the current owner of a [...]
Bank of England’s inflation over-optimism must now end April 17, 2012 EXCUSES, excuses, excuses. Once again, the Bank of England has suffered the humiliation of seeing consumer price index (CPI) inflation increase, rather than drop, last month. The CPI measure increased from 3.4 per cent to 3.5 per cent; let’s never forget that the target that the Bank is meant to be sticking to is two [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING April 17, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES Canadian approached for BoE job Mark Carney, governor of Canada’s central bank, has been informally approached to be a candidate to replace Sir Mervyn King as head of the Bank of England in June next year. One of the world’s most respected central bankers, Carney also heads the Financial Stability Board, which oversees [...]
