Speed rules new generation of phones February 29, 2012 Mobile World Congress saw dozens of new handset releases, as the industry’s big players laid out their stall for the rest of the year. The overriding theme was power, with a new generation of quad-core processors imbuing mobile devices with speeds that were unimaginable even on desktop PCs only a few years ago. The new [...]
UK schools can give global benefits February 29, 2012 THE PRESSURES of globalisation have inspired many senior managers either to leave Britain for their executive MBA (EMBA) or to join one of a growing number of joint programmes between British and foreign business schools. One such course is the Trium, a partnership between the LSE, New York University: Stern and the HEC School of [...]
US fourth quarter GDP revised up February 29, 2012 The U.S. economy grew a bit faster than initially thought in the fourth quarter on slightly firmer consumer and business spending, calming fears of a sharp slowdown in growth in early 2012. Gross domestic product expanded at a three per cent annual rate, the quickest pace since the second quarter of 2010, the Commerce Department [...]
Lloyds gets £11.4bn from ECB February 29, 2012 Lloyds said it had drawn down £11.4bn from the European Central Bank’s second offering of cheap three-year funds. “Lloyds Banking Group can confirm it has drawn £11.4bn under the LTRO for an initial term of three years. The aim is to part fund a pool of non-core euro denominated assets,” Lloyds said in a statement. [...]
James Murdoch to step down as executive chairman of News International February 29, 2012 James Murdoch is to step down as executive chairman of News International, the UK publishing arm of News Corporation. Murdoch, 39, is leaving the role to concentrate on the firm’s global TV business, according to the company. “We are all grateful for James’ leadership at News International and across Europe and Asia, where he has [...]
FTSE flat as ECB pours in more funds February 29, 2012 The FTSE 100 was flat this morning with investors awaiting another injection of cash from the European Central Bank, aimed at propping up the Eurozone. The ECB is expected to pump about 500bn euros (£422bn) into the Eurozone’s financial system to fight the region’s debt crisis, enabling banks to tap as many of the ultra-cheap, [...]
ECB pumps new funds into banks February 29, 2012 Banks grabbed 530bn euros at the European Central Bank’s second offering of cheap three-year funds, fuelling hopes that more credit will flow to businesses and government borrowing costs will ease further. A total of 800 banks borrowed money at the tender, with demand exceeding the 500bn euros expected by traders polled by Reuters and well [...]
Standard Chartered reports record earnings February 29, 2012 Standard Chartered notched up a ninth consecutive year of record earnings in 2011 on the back of buoyant growth in Hong Kong and Singapore, though rising competition for staff pushed up its wages bill. London-based Standard Chartered, which makes more than three quarters of its profit in Asia, said on Wednesday strong growth in both [...]
Eurozone inflation lower than forecast February 29, 2012 Eurozone inflation was lower than estimated in January, data showed, supporting market expectations that price growth will continue slowing as the economy contracts and possibly paving the way for an ECB rate cut. The European Union’s statistics office Eurostat said consumer prices in the 17 countries using the euro fell 0.8 per cent in January [...]
Mortgage lending in surprise lift in January February 29, 2012 Mortgage lending and mortgage approvals for house purchase in Britain posted a surprisingly strong rise in January, official data showed in a sign that the sluggish housing market is improving. The figures support forecasts for a pick-up in consumption this year as the housing market is a vital component of consumers’ wealth in Britain. However, [...]
