Both sides do battle in war for independents February 8, 2012 THE president of the United States, according to the late Clinton Rossiter, is America’s “Manager of Prosperity”. Presidents sink or swim on their economic records. When the economy booms, $15 trillion in activity can – no matter how absurd – be attributed to the astute management of one man. The same is obviously true in [...]
RAPID RESPONSES February 8, 2012 A British disease Simon Denham is right in many of his observations [Politicians are slaughtering UK finance – the goose that is still laying the golden egg, Monday], particularly the way politicians are keen to jump on any current popular issue, banker-bashing at present, and will happily destroy the income that is feeding them in [...]
Blow your mind with mega bass February 8, 2012 Headphones are about more than sound quality – make a statement with some of the most stylish musical headgear on the planet AKG REFERENCE HEADPHONES £499 akg.com If you want to stand out in a crowd, these mean, green sound machines are the headphones for you. SKULLCANDY HESH NBA THUNDER £55 uk.skullcandy.com Good sound quality [...]
Sending armed cops to arrest a hacker is like shooting gnats with a bazooka February 8, 2012 When police in New Zealand arrested suspected online pirate Kim Dotcom, they were accompanied by a dog unit and a SWAT team armed with automatic weapons. Could there be a better visual representation of the gulf between the people attempting to police the internet and those suspected of corrupting it? The man is even named [...]
TECH TALK February 8, 2012 APPLE ITV PRICE AND SPECS LEAKED Apple hasn’t even come close to confirming there will be an Apple TV – dubbed iTV in the US – but that hasn’t stopped its specs and price being leaked. Retailer Best Buy carried out a survey asking its customers if they would be interested in a 42-inch, 1080p [...]
Miners buoy FTSE as Greece remains on knife edge February 8, 2012 The FTSE 100 opened on the front foot this morning as investors continued to cling onto hopes that Greece could be steered away from financial meltdown. Greek party leaders were set to meet again today to hammer out a reform deal in return for the new €130bn rescue from the IMF and EU. Leaders of [...]
Reckitt Benckiser profits up as firm plots expansion February 8, 2012 British consumer goods group Reckitt Benckiser announced fourth quarter profits were up eight per cent at £546m as it launched a major push into emerging markets to offset sluggish European and North American sales. The firm – responsible for brands including Durex, Finish and Vanish – saw revenues increase to to £2.4bn for the quarter and [...]
Harry Redknapp found not guilty of tax evasion February 8, 2012 Harry Redknapp – the manager of Tottenham Hotspur football club – has been found not guilty of tax evasion in a case at Southwark Crown Court. The manager had been accused of hiding £189,000 in a Monaco bank account to avoid paying tax. He stood trial alongside Milan Mandaric, his former boss and now chairman of Sheffield [...]
UK banks to see weak loan growth – Citigroup February 8, 2012 UK banks could see weak loan growth in 2012 as households and corporates cut debt levels amid a tough economic environment and regulators press them to raise capital ratios, Citigroup said. Citigroup analyst Andrew Coombs downgraded Royal Bank of Scotland Group to “neutral” from “buy,” and cut his price target on Lloyds Banking Group on [...]
RBS chief Hester ‘considered quitting’ February 8, 2012 Royal Bank of Scotland chief executive Stephen Hester has revealed that he considered quitting during the furore over his bonus. Hester told the BBC that he was “not a robot” and said there had been some “deeply depressing” moments. However, the chief executive said it would have been “indulgent” of him to resign. Hester turned [...]
