Eurozone inflation lower than forecast February 29, 2012 Eurozone inflation was lower than estimated in January, data showed, supporting market expectations that price growth will continue slowing as the economy contracts and possibly paving the way for an ECB rate cut. The European Union’s statistics office Eurostat said consumer prices in the 17 countries using the euro fell 0.8 per cent in January [...]
Mortgage lending in surprise lift in January February 29, 2012 Mortgage lending and mortgage approvals for house purchase in Britain posted a surprisingly strong rise in January, official data showed in a sign that the sluggish housing market is improving. The figures support forecasts for a pick-up in consumption this year as the housing market is a vital component of consumers’ wealth in Britain. However, [...]
THE ROW THAT TOPPLED TOP MOBILE BOSS February 29, 2012 Senior exec slams former Everything Everywhere chief EVERYTHING Everywhere, Britain’s biggest network operator, “lost a year” under the leadership of its former boss Tom Alexander, according to an extraordinary outburst by a top executive. Benoit Scheen, France Telecom’s European boss and a member of the Everything Everywhere board, blamed Alexander for failing to make the [...]
Shock as Ireland plots referendum on fiscal treaty February 29, 2012 IRELAND has sparked fresh uncertainty across the European Union by vowing to hold a referendum on the new fiscal treaty. Enda Kenny, the Prime Minister, said he opted “on balance” for a poll after taking legal advice. The arrangements will be made within weeks. Last month Ireland joined 24 other EU states – but not [...]
Last three tussle for top KPMG job February 29, 2012 CORPORATE financier Simon Collins has emerged as one of the three short-listed candidates to become chairman elect at KPMG, the auditing and consulting group. Collins, who is the firm’s global head of transactions and restructuring, joined KPMG from the investment bank Warburg. He is said to be outgoing, part of one of the better performing [...]
Asia hedgies’ boost for City February 29, 2012 LONDON is set to pick up lucrative new work from the boom in the Asian hedge fund industry, according to the authors of a new report. China and Asia’s other emerging economies are expected to drive growth in the size of the global hedge fund industry this year and the skills and location of the [...]
Tougher visa cap opposed February 29, 2012 THE GOVERNMENT has been warned not to bring down its cap on non-EU immigration even further, as figures showed the number of people arriving in the UK on visa schemes is lower than the recently-imposed limit. A maximum of 21,700 general visas for skilled workers were to be made available in the first year of [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING February 29, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES DIMON DISMISSES REGULATORY THREAT JP Morgan Chase executives have told investors the bank will prosper even after the implementation of new regulations as they maintained profit targets and dismissed talk of a historic threat to Wall Street’s business model. “I’ll be damned if we don’t have record profits for the next year or [...]
Unite boss raises Olympic strike February 29, 2012 The leader of Britain’s biggest union has said workers should consider strike action to disrupt the Olympic Games as a protest against the government’s public spending cuts. Len McCluskey, general-secretary of the Unite union, told the Guardian that the austerity measures were so unfair that they justified action during the event. “If the Olympics provide [...]
SEC puts Goldman on notice February 29, 2012 US regulators have notified Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo that the banks may be hit by civil cases relating to sub-prime mortgage securities. Goldman said in a filing that the Securities and Exchange Commission has given it a “Wells notice” relating to a $1.3bn bond deal in 2006, which is intended to give a bank [...]
