Small firms still not prepared for rate rises February 17, 2015 BRITAIN’S small firms worry that an interest rate rise is a threat to their business, despite the Bank of England’s promises that any hike will be small and slow. Two-thirds of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are concerned about the idea of monetary tightening, a study by Lloyds Bank found, as the era of rock-bottom [...]
Sports Direct shares drop with M&A chief’s sudden exit February 17, 2015 SPORTS Direct’s share price fell more than four per cent in morning trading yesterday after it emerged that its mergers and acquisitions boss Jeff Blue was leaving the retailer. Blue, a former Merril Lynch banker, was hired two years ago to spearhead takeover deals for Mike Ashley’s high street giant. He was also standing in [...]
Swedish prices fall in January February 17, 2015 INFLATION in Sweden has edged up, but still remains negative. Inflation – as measured by the year-on-year change in the consumer price index – was minus 0.2 per cent in January, up slightly from December’s reading of minus 0.3 per cent. “This is a second upside surprise to inflation in the space of two months [...]
Germans get more upbeat February 17, 2015 GERMAN investors are increasingly upbeat as they recover from the initial shock of the war in Ukraine and bank on further economic growth, the ZEW survey showed yesterday. Its sentiment index rose for the fourth consecutive month, up from 48.4 in January to 53.0 in February. The score represents another strong reading, as the index’s long-term [...]
Labour ups the HSBC pressure on George Osborne over tax evasion row February 17, 2015 Labour’s Ed Balls has increased the pressure on George Osborne in the HSBC tax evasion row, calling on the chancellor to answer key questions. Labour are attempting to up the ante on Osborne, who has barely been seen over the course of the eight-day-long political row. HSBC’s Swiss branch is accused of helping customers evade [...]
Digital to dominate UK ad spend February 17, 2015 MORE than half of UK promotional spending in 2015 will pour into internet and mobile adverts, as the digital market expands to above £8bn. The overall UK advertising spend is due to grow 5.4 per cent to £15.8bn this year, a far higher share than the US (28 per cent) or western European average (34 [...]
Profit growth is just the charm for jewellery maker Pandora February 17, 2015 Shares in Danish jewellery maker Pandora soared almost 17 per cent yesterday after full-year results showed a near 40 per cent increase to net profits, powered by strong US sales and new ring ranges. The performance represents a turnround for the Denmark-listed company, famous for its charm bracelets, whose shares fell nearly 80 per cent [...]
Gucci to bag improvement later this year February 17, 2015 Gucci owner Kering expects the upmarket fashion house to show the tangible signs of a turnaround under its new creative and management team only in the second half of the year. Yesterday, it posted full-year profits down 6.7 per cent to €1.05bn (£780m) .
C4 Batten down hatches after Ukip mock-up February 17, 2015 UKIP supporters were not very enamoured of Channel 4’s 100 Days of Ukip. The spoof documentary depicted what might happen in the first 100 days after a landslide election victory for the purple people’s army. Particularly angry was the eurosceptic party’s MEP Gerard Batten, who is standing for election in Romford, where the mockumentary was [...]
Shrove Tuesday 2015: MPs get battered by journalists in annual pancake charity race February 17, 2015 Flipping MPs is sadly not a new thing, as followers of the expenses saga will remember. Yesterday, a group of MPs were flipping pancakes, not mortgages, taking part an annual charity race against Westminster journalists. A cross-party selection of MPs took on a media team led by Sky’s Sophy Ridge, who crossed the line first. [...]
