Economic woes knock UK steel January 29, 2012 The crisis in the Eurozone and economic uncertainty knocked steel production in the UK last year, new figures have revealed. Output in the final three months of the year was 7.7 per cent below that in the third quarter, and 0.5 per cent lower than at the same time in 2010. Steel output in 2011 [...]
E&Y warns of regulation big bang January 29, 2012 A wave of new reporting standards is set to catch finance executives unawares, a survey from Ernst & Young revealed this morning. Over six in 10 finance executives have not begun to assess the tax implications of the UK’s impending convergence with American generally accepted accounting practice (GAAP), the report showed. And over half have [...]
INVESTORS LOOK TOWARDS INDIA January 29, 2012 FOREIGN investors increasingly see India as an attractive location for new opportunities, according to Ernst & Young figures released this morning. Foreign direct investment (FDI) programmes to India jumped by 25 per cent last year; 864 FDI projects in the 11 months to November invested over $50bn (£32bn). The Indian government is currently facing protests [...]
A continent still growing nowhere fast January 29, 2012 FOR Europeans at the World Economic Forum in Davos this week, the 2012 theme – “the great transformation” – had a thoroughly gloomy ring to it. The phrase harks back to Karl Polanyi’s account of the transformational and traumatic rise of the market economy in England. But as Europe undergoes another epic transformation, it is [...]
Hildebrand’s farewell dinner January 29, 2012 AT A discreet farewell dinner in Davos for Swiss National Bank chief Philipp Hildebrand, a handful of guests including central bankers past and present were handed blank sheets of paper. Before they began eating they were asked to write down the probability, in their view, that the euro would collapse in the next five years, [...]
Pandit: jobs must be top priority for year ahead January 29, 2012 ON THE closing day of the World Economic Forum in Davos yesterday, chief executive Vikram Pandit told delegates that “jobs should be our number one priority” for this year. “Ultimately it is about growth. Nothing creates jobs better than growth,” said Pandit. He was one of five co-chairs for the event this year after being [...]
Anxiety over ECB loans January 29, 2012 DESPITE the widespread support for the European Central Bank’s decision to flood banks with cash in December, some bankers in Davos expressed anxiety over the long-term effects of the move. One bank chief expressed anxiety that the loans are “changing the dynamics of the system permanently in ways that we can’t anticipate”. The banker said [...]
PROSPECTS REMAIN GOOD FOR EUROPE IN THE LONG TERM January 29, 2012 Q&A: THE VIEW FROM DAVOS Q. WHAT HAS THE MOOD BEEN LIKE AT DAVOS THIS YEAR? A. The World Economic Forum has inevitably had a somewhat sombre feel but it has also been business-like and focused. What struck me was the universal focus on the issue of the young unemployed, not just in the developed [...]
DAVOS TWEETS January 29, 2012 @SydWalker 12.38pm Davos is a good news, bad news story. Bad news: the world is rooted & headed for depression. Good news? Davos stocks of caviar remain high @ErikaBlok 1.12am maybe Davos isn’t the future? @dbdj1007: Davos: if women are the future, where are they? @nicolasdemey 1.15am the cost of attending #Davos – Food ($2k) [...]
US in warning to trade cheats January 29, 2012 A NEW team of US trade enforcers will make countries think twice about putting up unfair barriers to American exports, President Barack Obama’s top trade official said. US Trade Representative Ron Kirk said that the team, announced by Obama last week, will include intelligence officials as well as representatives of other agencies in order to [...]
