EPISODE 39 – and for a moment, 40 is perfect December 5, 2011 MY mother called at 7.49am, reminding me of the details of forty years ago and the agonies I’d caused her. I think she meant just at that moment. But I could be wrong. When the subject of my 40th first arose we were three. I feigned indifference but enticing beach holidays, a football match against [...]
Shops, sun and spice: Marrakech is the perfect winter weekend getaway December 5, 2011 HAVING spent a bit of time in Morocco before, I was bracing myself. Six years ago, on a lone voyage on a rusty old ship from Algeciras in Spain to Tangier, I was accosted by three tipsy artifact sellers on board, before getting my camera pinched on arrival at the dusty old port. Further into [...]
FSA fines HSBC £10.5m for mis-selling to elderly December 5, 2011 The Financial Services Authority (FSA) regulator fined HSBC £10.5m for mis-selling products to elderly customers. The FSA said in a statement that HSBC’s NHFA subsidiary had given “inappropriate investment advice” to elderly customers and added that the British bank had estimated it would have to pay a further £29.3m in compensation to them. The FSA [...]
Service sector picks up December 5, 2011 Britain’s dominant services sector picked up slightly last month, defying forecasts it would stagnate, although employers shed jobs at the fastest pace in more than a year, a survey showed. The Markit/CIPS Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for the service sector rose to 52.1 in November from 51.3 in October, beating expectations for a dip to [...]
Central bank independence won’t last December 5, 2011 SLOWLY but surely, the case for central bank independence is being undone. It may not look like it, with central bankers being afforded even greater powers than before the recession, but we are probably at the high watermark of their influence and autonomy. At some stage, as it becomes clear that monetary policy has turned [...]
Manufacturers warn of stagnation December 5, 2011 British manufacturers report that output is growing at its weakest pace in nearly two years and expect it to stagnate early next year, held back by worries about the euro zone and weak demand at home, a survey showed on Monday. The EEF, the main trade body for UK manufacturers, cuts its 2012 growth forecast [...]
TUI profits beat expectations December 5, 2011 Europe’s biggest tour operator TUI Travel reported an 18 per cent rise in full-year profit, ahead of expectations, benefiting from increased sales of holidays to resorts it exclusively operates and an upturn in bookings online. The group, which operates the Thomson and First Choice chains, said operating profit for the year to 30 September was [...]
China services sector growth slows December 5, 2011 China’s services sector cooled in November to its weakest growth in three months, an HSBC purchasing managers’ index showed on Monday, the latest data portraying an economy slowing quickly and in need of policy support. The index fell to 52.5, a sharp decline given that October’s reading was 54.1 – the highest in four months [...]
Pension deficits hit 2011 high of £80bn December 5, 2011 Funding deficits of UK pension schemes rose 33 per cent to £80bn at the end of November, hitting their highest level this year as both corporate bond yields and stock markets fell, a survey showed on Monday. The report by consultancy firm Mercer showed accounting measures of defined benefit pension schemes in the UK showed [...]
Michael Page sees profits at lower end of forecasts December 5, 2011 Recruitment company Michael Page International said full-year profit would be toward the bottom end of forecasts, adding the European economic crisis had hit demand from its customers. “Since our interim management statement in October, markets have continued to weaken as the euro zone crisis and the lowering of GDP forecasts worldwide have reduced client and [...]
