Factory gate inflation lower than expected in December January 13, 2012 Factory gate inflation fell more than expected in December, official data showed, boosting expectations that the Bank of England will inject more stimulus into the struggling economy soon. The Office for National Statistics said producer output price inflation slowed to 4.8 per cent on the year from 5.4 percent in November, a bigger drop than [...]
Ted Baker reports strong Christmas January 13, 2012 British designer brand Ted Baker said it would meet forecasts for year profit after a sharp rise in sales over the Christmas period put it firmly in the festive winners’ camp. The group said on Friday its retail sales increased 15.7 per cent in the eight weeks to 7 January driven by a 7.3 per [...]
China’s foreign exchange reserves slip January 13, 2012 China’s official reserves slipped to $3.18 trillion in the final quarter of 2011, signalling that the days of rampant export-led accumulation of foreign currency are numbered and that new monetary policy steps may be needed to counter capital outflows. The People’s Bank of China published data on Friday showing a $20.6bn, or 0.6 per cent, [...]
Invensys issues profit warning January 13, 2012 Invensys said its profit for the year would be hit by higher costs in its rail signalling division and in work on control and safety systems in eight nuclear reactors under construction in China. The group said as a result of the operational issues, its operating profit for the year to end-March 2012 would be [...]
TESCO TO BET £500M ON UK FIGHTBACK January 12, 2012 A RATTLED Tesco is set to splash around £500m on revamping its UK store network and recruiting new staff after it stunned the City with its first profit warning in twenty years. Chief executive Philip Clarke is ready to sanction an investment of “hundreds of millions” of pounds in Britain after the supermarket yesterday posted [...]
Tyrie: new watchdog is already in need of reform January 12, 2012 THE GOVERNMENT’S new consumer watchdog for financial services must break away from the “bureaucratic” and “box-ticking culture” of the Financial Services Authority (FSA), according to a stark warning this morning from Andrew Tyrie MP. Tyrie, chairman of the Treasury Select Committee, has blasted the past failures of the FSA to protect consumers — and fears [...]
Clegg in push for blind CVs January 12, 2012 JOB APPLICATIONS would be fairer if CVs were made anonymous and schools were not mentioned, Nick Clegg claimed yesterday. The deputy Prime Minister believes racist HR staff may judge applicants on their names, and the “old boys network” means having a prestigious school on the form helps some applicants to the disadvantage of others. Clegg [...]
Londoners can’t wait another decade January 12, 2012 IT was good to hear Boris Johnson’s commitment to boosting London’s rail and road infrastructure at his speech to Mansion House last night. High speed rail is a waste of money but there are plenty of smaller, local projects, including in London, that would add far more value and tap more easily into private funds. [...]
Boris pledges new tunnel January 12, 2012 LONDON MAYOR Boris Johnson has pledged to build a new tunnel under the Thames within the next decade as part of a plan to ease congestion problems for commuters into the city. Addressing government leaders last night, Johnson said a crossing between the Greenwich peninsula and Silvertown in the Royal Docks, could see 2,400 vehicles [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING January 12, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES SFO TARGETS CRIMINAL COMPANY DIVIDENDS The UK’s fraud investigator intends to confiscate shareholder dividends paid by companies convicted of criminal offences, after it won approval for a landmark court action. The Serious Fraud Office won a civil recovery order yesterday against the principal shareholder of a company that had admitted corruption. GROUPAMA TO [...]
