Major’s windfall tax idea is as silly as Miliband’s energy price cap October 22, 2013 EVERY so often, when I get depressed about the state of contemporary British politics, I begin to recall with something close to fondness Sir John Major’s time as prime minister from 1990 to 1997. These days, others have also started to make the same mistake, perhaps unsurprisingly. Much of Major’s 1997 election manifesto was lucid [...]
Bank of England hires help for strategic review October 22, 2013 THE BANK of England yesterday revealed it has hired two consultancies to work out how best to run its new, expanded functions. McKinsey will run the strategic review, looking at how resources are allocated across the Bank. Deloitte will look at value for money across the Bank of England. It comes after the Bank gained responsibility [...]
Research shows huge gulf in UK jobs estimates October 22, 2013 THREE well-established surveys of the UK’s job market suggest that official figures may be overestimating UK employment by over a million jobs, according to research released by Markit last night. The huge divergence between estimates made by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and a number of other sources has opened up since 2010. The gauges [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 23 October 2013 October 22, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Ebay buys same-day courier service Ebay is acquiring a same-day courier service based in London and overhauling its own website as it seeks to compete against Amazon and Walmart and give itself a social media edge. The Californian ecommerce group is buying Shutl, a four-year-old start-up with operations in the US and the [...]
Co-op chairman quits amid bank recriminations October 22, 2013 THE CO-OPERATIVE Group’s chairman Len Wardle said yesterday he will stand down from the role, shortly after former chief executive Peter Marks claimed the mutual’s governance structure is dangerously out of date. His surprise departure comes as the group finalises months of intense negotiations with hedge funds over the future of the Co-op Bank. The group is [...]
Food unit under pressure from a boom in convenience stores October 22, 2013 THE CO-OP Group’s food retailing business continued to lose market share over the past three months and remains the worse performing grocery retailer in the UK, according to industry data. The Co-operative, which is the UK’s fifth largest food retailer, suffered a 1.2 per cent year-on-year fall in sales in the 12 weeks to 13 [...]
US jobs data pushes easing taper away October 22, 2013 THE LONG-awaited tapering of the US Federal Reserve’s quantitative easing (QE) programme is likely to be pushed back further, after the US jobs figures released yesterday failed to meet expectations. The non-farm payrolls data for September, which was delayed by more than a fortnight by the shutdown of the federal government, shows that 148,000 jobs [...]
Fitch report rules on AAA October 22, 2013 A REPORT by credit ratings agency Fitch yesterday suggests countries with public debt of over 80-90 per cent of GDP should not get an AAA rating. The research gives some leeway to the US, UK, Germany and France, which it says can bear higher levels.
Apple shows off new iPad lineup as tablets boom October 22, 2013 APPLE revealed a host of new iPads last night as the company arranges its lineup ahead of the holiday season. The technology giant offered audiences a look at its new iPad Air, a premium £399 tablet that is 20 per cent thinner than the 9.7in iPad it replaces, and its iPad Mini with retina display [...]
Bank of England could move the goalposts on forward guidance October 22, 2013 THE BANK of England might not raise interest rates when unemployment falls to seven per cent, deputy governor Charlie Bean said yesterday. Policymakers have set the seven per cent threshold as the stage at which it will look at hiking rates. But if they believe there is no risk of inflation rising too far, the Bank could [...]
