HOLDING NO STOCK IN EURO DELIVERANCE November 21, 2011 INVESTOR sentiment has turned decidedly bearish over the past week. As usual, the primary concern is the slow motion train wreck that is the European debt crisis. This means that Eurozone sovereign bond yields remain in focus, with the spreads of Spanish, Italian and even French debt over German bunds under intense scrutiny. Once again, [...]
THE TIPSTER November 21, 2011 Utility stock Severn Trent reports interim results on Thursday and investors will be hoping to hear that their bumper dividend payout is safe. A typical defensive play, the shares have performed well in 2011 gaining over 7 per cent. With uncertainty continuing, equity investors may well continue to seek the safe haven properties of the [...]
Get roped into a climb at The Castle November 21, 2011 You can see The Castle climbing wall at Manor House long before you get anywhere near it. The gigantic Victorian building looks every bit the fortress it is named for – it’s slightly disappointing when you find out it started life as a lowly pump-house (it also makes you realise how much of a sense [...]
FIT IN THE CITY November 21, 2011 FITNESS & DIET EXPERT If you’re looking to rock your Christmas tux, or slide into your salopettes without a hint of Stella belly, you’ll need to work. Here’s how: Opt for high-energy workouts. In a study at Duke University in the US, 30 minutes of vigorous aerobic exercise (the type where you’re sweaty and out [...]
EPISODE 37: IN WHICH I ASK SOME QUESTIONS – AND GET SOME ANSWERS November 21, 2011 We’ve had lawyers and accountants in all morning. The Question: How to minimise the tax exposure of an offshore special purposes vehicle? The Answers: Lengthy. Complex. Expensive. And dreary. What is it about lawyers and accountants? Maybe it’s the years of professional study and examinations after the years of university study and examinations. Institutionalises them. [...]
Fornata joins Italian legion November 21, 2011 Fornata 15 Kingly Street, London W1B 5PS Tel:020 8181 8887 FOOD *** SERVICE **** ATMOSPHERE *** Cost per person without wine: £20-25 When Casanova came to London in 1763, Soho was his first port of call. At just 38, he was already renowned across Europe as a distinguished polymath. His spheres of expertise included mathematics, [...]
QUAFFER’S CORNER November 21, 2011 Soaking up the Alsatian tastes I had an interesting tasting here at Lutyens last week. Christophe Ehrhart from Josmeyer gave a talk with accompanying wines from the estate he runs in Alsace, the sliver of land between the Vosges Mountains and the Rhine that boasts some of the lowest rainfall in France and a complex [...]
FOOD & BOOZE NEWS November 21, 2011 WINTER-WONDER COCKTAILS AT CASSIS The bar at Cassis, the popular French bistro in Knightsbridge has launched a new winter menu including a new range of dessert cocktails, perfect for those who would prefer a liquid dessert to one of their renowned Provencal tarts. Guests can choose from Tiramisu or Apple Pie cocktails. For a winter [...]
Let’s not go back to sub-prime loans November 21, 2011 THERE are two ways one can address a problem caused by faulty policies: by tackling its root causes – or by addressing some of its manifestations, and risk creating more issues thanks to the law of unintended consequences which plagues all government actions. Regrettably, when it comes to house prices, the government is largely going [...]
BOOST FOR MORTGAGES November 21, 2011 THE GOVERNMENT will today launch a scheme to encourage first-time buyers to take out 95 per cent mortgages even as new figures show the largest monthly drop in house prices since before the financial crisis. Prime Minister David Cameron and his deputy Nick Clegg will today unveil a plan to “help people get on the [...]
