Cameron: Police can seize UK passports under new terrorism legislation September 1, 2014 Police will be given the temporary power to seize the passports of those suspected of being involved with terrorism, the Prime Minister said today. In a statement to parliament afternoon David Cameron said it was "abhorrent" Brits had "declared their allegiance" to the Islamic State. Police will be able to seize passports at borders, while [...]
UK manufacturing PMI: Russia tensions push growth to its lowest in 14 months September 1, 2014 It turns out even the UK manufacturing sector, which over recent months has staged a glorious recovery, is vulnerable to the whims of Vladimir Putin. The Purchasing Manager's Index, published this morning, fell to 52.5 in August, its lowest reading since June 2013 and well below economists' expectations of 55. The index, published by Markit [...]
It’s official: German GDP contracted 0.2 per cent in the second quarter September 1, 2014 More bad news for the Eurozone: the German economy contracted during the second quarter of the year, the country's Federal Statistics Office confirmed today. The figures confirmed preliminary estimates, which suggested GDP shrank 0.2 per cent in the second quarter, after 0.7 per cent growth in the first quarter. Compared with the same period in [...]
Three charts showing the challenges facing new Tesco boss Dave Lewis September 1, 2014 New Tesco chief executive Dave Lewis starts his job today, a month earlier than originally anticipated. The supermarket is clearly desperate: on Friday it issued a profit warning saying it expected full-year profits to hit £2.4bn, rather than the £2.8bn expected. The company has been battling against the increasing might of discounters Aldi and Lidl, [...]
Rouble falls again as Nato accuses Russia of a “blatant violation” of Ukraine’s sovereignty August 30, 2014 The rouble continued to drop today as tensions in Ukraine continued. The currency fell 0.98 per cent against the euro and as much as 0.4 per cent against the dollar, a record intraday low, as Moscow's equities index, the Micex, fell 1.62 per cent. The losses came as Nato accused Russia of a "blatant violation" [...]
Average bonuses rise 4.9 per cent as bank and insurance bonuses hit their highest since 2008 August 29, 2014 Bonus payments in the UK rose to £40.5bn in the year to April, up almost five per cent on a year ago. In the finance and insurance sector, payments hit £15bn – their highest level since the peak of the financial crisis, in 2008. Changes to taxes in the 2012/13 financial year meant many businesses [...]
Eurozone inflation falls to five-year low as unemployment stays flat at 11.5 per cent August 29, 2014 Consumer price inflation in the eurozone dropped to 0.3 per cent in August, its lowest level since October 2009, as unemployment remained stubbornly flat at 11.5 per cent, official figures published this morning showed. Although the figures were underwhelming, they met analyst expectations. The drop in inflation was largely driven by energy prices, which fell [...]
Malaysia Airlines to slash 6,000 jobs August 29, 2014 Khazanah Nasional Berhad, the state-owned Malaysian investor buying out embattled carrier Malaysia Airlines, has announced plans to cut 6,000 staff at the airline – about a third of its 20,000-strong workforce – as part of a radical restructuring. Shares in Malaysia Airlines were suspended from trading on the Malaysian stock exchange before the announcement. Khazanah [...]
“Wish we could say more”: Apple sends out event invite – could it be to do with the iPhone 6…? August 28, 2014 If you received one of these, you know you're in Apple's in-crowd – this afternoon mysterious invitations landed in the inboxes of Silicon Valley's digirati. What could it possibly be? Judging by previous rumours, it's either: a) the iPhone 6 launch; or, er, b) the iPhone 6 launch. Although there's a (slim) chance it might [...]
David Cameron warns of “further consequences” if Russia continues to invade Ukraine August 28, 2014 David Cameron has said he is "extremely concerned" by evidence Vladimir Putin has launched a full-blown invasion in eastern Ukraine, warning there will be "further consequences" if Russia doesn't pull them out. In a statement this afternoon, the Prime Minister said the Russian president was "completely disregarding" the sovereignty of its neighbour. The international community [...]
