Growth bounce for GDP but UK set to slow again November 1, 2011 ECONOMIC growth rebounded slightly in the third quarter, the Office for National Statistics’ (ONS) preliminary estimates revealed yesterday. Growth came in at 0.5 per cent, up from 0.1 per cent in the second quarter. Year on year, the ONS figures put growth at 0.5 per cent. However, October’s manufacturing figures from Markit show the sector [...]
Double dip in industry may be avoidable November 1, 2011 MANUFACTURING output has continued to expand in the US, China and India, purchasing managers’ indices out yesterday revealed, though the UK, Brazil, Taiwan and South Korea all registered declines in October. Analysts believe a global manufacturing recession may be avoided. International data from Markit, and US data from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) is [...]
Australian interest rates cut November 1, 2011 Fears over the global economic slowdown yesterday pushed the Reserve Bank of Australia to cut interest rates for the first time since April 2009. The benchmark interest rate was cut from 4.75 per cent to 4.5 per cent. Governor Glenn Stevens pointed to “subdued demand conditions” and also explained that the Australian dollar’s strength helped [...]
Women losing out in pensions November 1, 2011 Almost half of women over 40 who live with a partner have no independent pension, research out today by Prudential reveals. Fifty-six per cent of couples of the same age have not worked out how much money they will need to live once they have retired, the study found. Prudential warns they “could be sleepwalking [...]
Drop tax relief for rich says paper November 1, 2011 Tax relief on pension lump sums disproportionately benefits the wealthy at taxpayers’ expense, claims a report out today from liberal think-tank CentreForum. From 2012/13, wealthy retirees will still be able to take £375,000 from a £1.5m pension pot, tax-free. The think-tank argues instead that individuals taking lump sums above the higher rate income tax threshold [...]
Russian IPOs in spotlight as FTSE probes free float November 1, 2011 COMPANIES that float only a small proportion of their shares in London could be barred from FTSE stock indices in future under new proposals from the index group yesterday. FTSE is to consult on whether to make UK-based firms list at least 25 per cent of shares, rather than the current 15 per cent, to [...]
SFO: help us to unmask fraud November 1, 2011 THE SERIOUS Fraud Office (SFO) yesterday unveiled a new service it hopes will “unmask fraud and bribery” in the City. SFO Confidential is an online whistle-blowing tool that allows City workers to anonymously tip off the watchdog to any activity they think may be suspect. The service, which also includes a telephone hotline, promises to [...]
Supermarkets vie to promote value for money November 1, 2011 WITH the economic outlook still looking bleak and consumers (as shown by YouGov’s Household Economic Activity Tracker) increasingly price conscious it is not surprising that a number of big supermarkets are keen to emphasise their value. Sainsbury’s launched its “live well for less” advertisements on 15 September and Tesco’s “Big Price Drop” campaign came out [...]
Lamprell wins North Sea work November 1, 2011 Lamprell, an engineering firm serving the oil and gas industry, has been awarded two new construction contracts by Nexen Petroleum UK worth in excess of $200m. The first of the contracts relates to the Golden Eagle Development in the North Sea and will involve the construction of a two level Wellhead deck. The second contract [...]
Soco slows ramp up in production November 1, 2011 British oil firm Soco International has delayed a ramp up in production at its oil field off the Vietnam coast but said it was confident of achieving target output during 2012. Soco, which in August said it could reach its target of producing 55,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd) from its Te Giac Te [...]
