FTSE jumps on prospect of new cash injection from ECB February 28, 2012 THE FTSE 100 crept into positive territory yesterday, with miners tracking metal prices higher as the anticipation of cheap European Central Bank loans flooding the financial system boosted the outlook for raw materials demand and for lending. London’s blue-chip index closed up 12.36 points, or 0.2 per cent, at 5,927.91, as gains were capped after [...]
Dow closes above 13,000 milestone February 28, 2012 THE DOW closed above 13,000 for the first time since May 2008 yesterday and the Standard & Poor’s 500 also hit a milestone, as buoyant US consumer confidence data and a sharp drop in oil prices nudged the nearly five-month rally forward. The S&P 500 closed above 1,370, its May 2011 intraday high, a move [...]
Accommodating the greatest show on earth by calling on a global team February 28, 2012 COUNTDOWN TO THE LONDON 2012 OLYMPIC GAMES 149 DAYS TO GO Chris Hale explains why it makes sense to be the official hotel services provider to this summer’s Games Q. What was your brand’s primary reason for being involved with the Games? A. There are many compelling reasons why we have chosen to be a [...]
Hysteria over student visas is damaging our reputation and Britain’s future growth February 28, 2012 THE UK’s higher education sector is an export success story. Only the United States recruits more international students. Those from outside the European Union contribute £2.5bn each year in fees to our universities and spend a further £2.5bn while they are here. If students in further education and private sector colleges are included, the figure [...]
Tax campaigners against Barclays are misinformed February 28, 2012 ON MONDAY, David Gauke, exchequer secretary to the Treasury, told a stunned House of Commons that a bank had attempted to use a tax avoidance scheme to reduce its tax bill by £0.3bn. The government would act swiftly to close this loophole. As other banks are also understood to have used this dodge, it’s hoped [...]
There’s no logic behind the workfare proposal February 28, 2012 THE government has introduced a scheme that encourages people on the unemployment benefit to work at selected firms, such as Tesco. They are paid nothing but are alleged to benefit by gaining work experience. This is not slave labour, as some have alleged. No one is forced to do this unpaid work, not even as [...]
RAPID RESPONSES February 28, 2012 Damaged goods [Re: Don’t blame the Depression on the gold standard, yesterday] George Selgin writes that there can be no question of a credible government-backed gold standard without public confidence in governments’ monetary promises. But that also applies to government-sponsored paper money. The failure of both is a lesson that we should get governments out [...]
Lower volatility drives flows into higher yields February 28, 2012 AS a result of lower FX market volatility and high daily trading volumes, combined with rock-bottom dollar yields, traders have been driven into long risk positions in the hunt for gains. Higher-yielding Canadian and Aussie dollars and even the euro have been targets for trading on the risk trend. This trend was given another boost [...]
CONTINUING THE DOVISH BOE TREND February 28, 2012 UK BRANCH MANAGER, EASY-FOREX DESPITE signs of improvement for the UK economy, the pound traded at the month’s low versus the US dollar and a 10-week low versus the euro last week. A weaker pound was initially triggered after the release of the minutes for the Bank of England’s (BoE) February policy meeting. The minutes [...]
Rev it up baby: Bentley’s super-hot V8 February 28, 2012 THE engine sound reminds me of a church organ,” I say as I press and lift my right foot on the accelerator in Bentley’s latest Continental GT V8. What an intensely lovely and rich sound it is too. The engine serves up sonorous notes rising from the deepest rumble at low speeds, before swelling upwards [...]
