French economy grinds to a halt April 10, 2012 France’s economy posted no growth in the first quarter and there are no sign of a strong recovery in activity in the coming months, according to a Bank of France survey. In its monthly report, the Bank of France indicated that the euro zone’s second largest economy avoided a recession, after it grew by 0.2 [...]
US jobs blow dents markets April 10, 2012 The FTSE 100 tracked losses in Asia this morning as bleak US jobs data took its toll on investor sentiment with miners and banks hit. On Friday the US Labour Department reported that the number of unemployed workers was almost 13m and hiring slowed, raising the alarm over the state of the country’s economic recovery. [...]
Nissan to invest $200m in UK car project April 10, 2012 Japanese carmaker Nissan said it will spend $200m to build a new hatchback at its UK plant as Prime Minister David Cameron began a tour of Japan and Southeast Asia aimed at boosting trade and investment ties. The investment, announced hours before Cameron’s plane touched down at Tokyo’s Haneda airport, underscored the business focus of [...]
Sony forecasts $6.4bn annual loss April 10, 2012 Sony Corp forecast a record $6.4bn net loss for the business year just ended, its fourth straight year of losses and double earlier forecasts, inflated by writing off deferred tax assets in the United States. In a bid to ease investor concerns over its deteriorating bottom line, the Japanese consumer electronics giant said it would [...]
German exports rise again April 10, 2012 Germany’s exports were up in February, marking the second consecutive month of growth. Exports were up 1.6 per cent following a 3.4 per cent increase in January. German firms had the most success in markets outside the eurozone where they recorded growth of 13.4 per cent compared with the year before.
Vedanta hit by fall in iron ore output April 10, 2012 India-focused miner Vedanta posted a drop in full-year iron ore output, as a ban on mining in the southern Indian state of Karnataka and logistical bottlenecks continued to bite. Iron ore is typically one of London-listed Vedanta’s most profitable products along with zinc, accounting for almost a third of profits. The miner said its iron [...]
China in export led trade surplus April 10, 2012 China returned to an export-led trade surplus of $5.35bn in March, heralding the prospect that a rebound in the global economy is lifting overseas orders just in time to compensate for a slowdown in domestic demand The surprise return to surplus from February’s $31.5bn deficit confounded expectations that trade would remain $1.3bn in the red, [...]
Interest rates frozen April 5, 2012 The Bank of England has continued to keep UK interest rates at 0.5 per cent and announced no change to its quantitative easing(QE) programme. Rates have been at 0.5 per cent since March 2009.
New car sales up 1.8 per cent in March April 5, 2012 New car sales rose 1.8 percent on the year in the key month of March to 372,835 vehicles, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said on Thursday. March is typically the busiest month for registrations, accounting for 18 percent of the full year’s volume on average. “The important March new car market performed above [...]
Miners lift FTSE but UK factory figures cast shadow April 5, 2012 The FTSE 100 edged up this morning as miners were boosted by more positive data from China but a shadow was cast over the UK by bleak factory output figures. Investors were also eyeing the Bank of England’s interest rate decision at midday with rates expected to be frozen again with no more quantitative easing [...]
