More QE likely next month as rates are held January 12, 2012 EXTRA asset purchases are likely to be announced next month, economists believe, after interest rates and the quantitative purchase (QE2) scheme were both left unchanged yesterday by the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC). The base rate still stands at the record low level of 0.5 per cent, whilst the latest £75bn of asset [...]
No change as ECB thinks inflation will fall this year January 12, 2012 INTEREST rates remained unchanged in the Eurozone yesterday as European Central Bank (ECB) boss Mario Draghi reassured markets that he is on track to hit the inflation target of two per cent this year. “Inflation is likely to stay above two per cent for several months to come before declining to below two per cent,” [...]
Weak industry could make UK economy shrink January 12, 2012 BRITISH industrial production declined sharply in November, and economists fear it may have tipped the already slow economy into contraction in the final quarter of 2011. Production in the Eurozone also fell, declining by 0.1 per cent in November, led by falls of 9.4 per cent in Ireland and one per cent in Germany. The [...]
Centrica and SSE join gas bill price war January 12, 2012 THE ENERGY price war between the UK’s big six companies escalated yesterday as Centrica-owned British Gas cut its electricity tariff by five per cent and SSE announced a gas price reduction of 4.5 per cent. British Gas has now cut its electricity prices by five per cent with immediate effect, while Scottish and Southern Energy [...]
Barratt sees first half profits rising January 12, 2012 HOUSEBUILDER Barratt Developments yesterday reported a surge in first-half operating profit and a rise in sales. A focus on margins is helping UK housebuilders recover their footing after several difficult years, supported by new and cheaper land and a shift from apartments towards houses, which is lifting average selling prices. Barratt, one of the larger [...]
Multi-million pound properties on the up as London prices soar January 12, 2012 PROPERTY prices in the capital are booming, and show no sign of slowing as a side effect of economic gloom, two separate studies released this morning have shown. According to LSL Property Services, London house prices are 3.1 per cent higher than last year, bucking the overall downward trend that saw property prices slump 0.5 [...]
MINERVA APPOINTS EXTRA AGENTS TO MARKET WALBROOK OFFICES January 12, 2012 PROPERTY agent Jones Lang LaSalle has been hired to give an extra push to Minerva’s efforts to find tenants for St Botolph’s and the Walbrook (pictured left) in the City of London. Minerva, bought by Delancey and Area Property Partners last year, has struggled to find tenants since completing the Walbrook in 2010. CBRE and [...]
M&S CHAIR BROADENS OLD-SCHOOL EDUCATION January 12, 2012 SCHRODERS, Barclays Wealth, Deutsche Bank, Killik & Co, JP Morgan – the former pupils of Rugby School seem to have gotten everywhere in the City. And on Wednesday night, 190 Old Rugbeians reunited at Eversheds for an evening in aid of the Arnold Foundation, the trust named after Rugby’s progressive headmaster Dr Thomas Arnold that [...]
FirstGroup’s cash output is slowing down January 12, 2012 TRANSPORT operator FirstGroup said its cash generation for the full year would be lower than first thought because the tough economic climate had prevented it from selling as many of its businesses as planned. FirstGroup, which operates rail and bus services in Britain and owns the Greyhound coach company in the US, now expects to [...]
Air France unveils debt plan January 12, 2012 AIR FRANCE-KLM yesterday announced a pay freeze for French staff and cutbacks in its fleet as part of a three-year plan to end financial rot at Europe’s largest airline by revenues. The belt-tightening, coming in the wake of a series of staff strikes, is the first stage of a politically sensitive turnaround plan expected to [...]
