Swiss Re sees policy prices rising further August 9, 2012 SWISS Re, the world’s second-biggest reinsurer, said premiums are likely to rise further in a continued reaction to the unusually high number of natural catastrophes last year, as it posted an unexpected quarterly profit. Huge natural catastrophes in 2011, including the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, have allowed insurers, who for years grappled with low bond [...]
US boosted by strong jobs and trade data yet stocks decline August 9, 2012 THE NUMBER of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly fell last week, offering hope that some of last month’s improvement in job growth could be sustained and give the economy a lift. Other data yesterday showed the deficit on the trade balance in June was the smallest in one and a half years [...]
ECB slashes growth forecasts yet Noyer pledge eases woes August 9, 2012 THE EUROPEAN Central Bank (ECB) slashed its growth forecasts for the Eurozone yesterday, with governing council member Christian Noyer pledging to reduce borrowing costs for struggling member states. The single currency area will see output shrink by 0.3 per cent this year, the ECB expects, down from the previous estimate of a 0.2 per cent [...]
China’s growth shows signs of hitting brakes August 9, 2012 CHINA’s industrial output growth slowed to 9.2 per cent year-on-year in July, its weakest since May 2009, down from 9.5 per cent in June. In a day of bearish news for the emerging economic giant yesterday, investment and retail data also disappointed analysts. Growth of retail sales in July, the biggest driver of the economy’s [...]
Post Office to offer mortgages across its local branch network August 9, 2012 POST Office customers will be able to pick up a mortgage alongside their book of stamps, under a pilot scheme launched yesterday. Trained mortgage advisers are now available in five of the organisation’s outlets – Birmingham, Solihull, Walsall, Luton and Norwich – to offer free consultations as part of the firm’s push to become one [...]
Recruiter hit by downturn August 9, 2012 ADECCO, the world’s largest temporary staffing agency, yesterday said that economic stagnation in the Eurozone and Japan had caused its second-quarter net profit to dip 20 per cent to €113m (£89m). The firm reported a four per cent drop in sales to €5.2bn, with France, Iberia, Italy and Japan posting double-digit falls in revenue. “Europe [...]
Floods take toll as Bumi slips to underlying loss August 9, 2012 BUMI, the Indonesia-focused coal miner co-founded by Nat Rothschild, has slipped to a loss in the first-half of the year, as flooding and rising costs hit production. Though Bumi’s operating profit almost doubled to $128m (£82m), the firm said yesterday that its bottom line was hit by the unpredictable weather, adding up to an underlying [...]
Tata earnings driven by Jaguar Land Rover August 9, 2012 A STRONG performance at Jaguar Land Rover helped car giant Tata Motors post rising quarterly profits and revenues yesterday. Sales at JLR jumped 34.4 per cent in the three months to the end of June compared to a year ago, as the British firm shifted 83,452 units. China was the main driver of growth, with [...]
Rothschild’s venture is turning out to be a rather bumpy ride August 9, 2012 UK BUSINESSES aren’t the only ones hit by the wet summer. Bumi’s production problems certainly put a dampener on this set of figures, but investors will be far more interested in the firm’s long-term plan to turn its fortunes around. For such a young public company Bumi has had more than its fair share of [...]
Food price spike prompts fears of export bans and a new crisis August 9, 2012 GLOBAL food prices jumped six per cent last month, it emerged yesterday, sparking fears that governments could intervene in agricultural trade, stoking a food crisis like that of 2007-08. The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said its food price index spiked between July and June, and urged authorities not to react by banning exports. [...]
