Oil plant shuts amid Iraq chaos June 17, 2014 THE BIGGEST oil refinery in Iraq was shut down yesterday, amid fears militants from terrorist group the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isis) could gain control of the plant. Foreign workers have been evacuated from the site in the northern town of Baiji and the refinery has been surrounded by militants but remains [...]
Foreign buyers push up price of TSB shares June 17, 2014 ENTHUSIASTIC American investors are helping to push TSB’s shares towards the top end of the price range, City A.M. understands. Such a strong result for the bank would represent a surprise success, as markets have suddenly turned cautious on initial public offerings in recent weeks. Lloyds is selling a 25 per cent stake in the [...]
London signs slew of deals to foster renminbi trading June 17, 2014 THE LONDON Stock Exchange (LSE) yesterday inked agreements with two of China’s biggest banks to give businesses in China greater access to UK capital markets. The group said it had signed memorandums of understanding with Agricultural Bank of China and the Bank of China to boost London’s role as a hub for the burgeoning offshore [...]
Marx was wrong (cont): Corporate giants are inherently fragile June 17, 2014 ONE of Karl Marx’s big theories was that capitalism had an inherent tendency towards monopoly and would thus self-destroy. The idea remains widely held, and is one reason countries operate stringent anti-trust regulations. But it’s a little more complicated than that. First, many monopolies or quasi-monopolies are actually created by the state, rather than resulting [...]
Record new low for Ed Miliband’s approval rating June 17, 2014 Labour leader Ed Miliband has seen his approval rating among the British public sink to a record low, a new poll has found. Miliband’s satisfaction rating slipped from -25 to -39 in a poll conducted by ICM for the Guardian newspaper yesterday. The ratings mean that 61 per cent of those asked think the Labour [...]
Help to Buy not offering value for taxpayers June 17, 2014 THE GOVERNMENT’S flagship Help to Buy scheme may not represent value for money for the UK taxpayer, a report from an influential committee of MPs has concluded. The Public Accounts Committee found that the government did not conduct proper impact assesments of the scheme, nor offer alternative options to boost home ownership around the country [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 18 June 2014 June 17, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Tories eye instant bank account switch Banks could be forced by a future Conservative government to allow customers to switch current accounts immediately if a regulator’s analysis shows this is worthwhile, says Andrea Leadsom, the City minister. Most banks oppose such a plan, saying it would cost the industry up to £10bn to [...]
RBS faces new questions on small business June 17, 2014 TROUBLED bank RBS is facing fresh scrutiny over its treatment of small businesses, after contradictory evidence emerged yesterday on whether or not it made a profit from working with struggling firms. The bank had been accused of making money out of distressed businesses, with some firms accusing the bank of forcing them to go bust [...]
Hibu-who? Iconic Yellow Pages brand set for big UK comeback June 17, 2014 The company behind iconic UK brand Yellow Pages is set to ditch Hibu as the face of its operations in Britain in favour of the much better-known Yell. Following a rebrand two years ago, when Yellow Pages became Hibu and expanded its digital operation, the group has since decided that Yell has more resonance with [...]
Lidl owner to be biggest grocery retailer in western Europe by 2018 June 17, 2014 Schwarz Group, the owner of cut-price supermarket Lidl, is set to become the top grocery retailer in western Europe, with the German company likely to overtake current market leader French rival Carrefour by 2018 and perhaps as soon as the end of next year,a report released by Planet Retail yesterday claimed. With Schwarz Group only [...]
