Only 4.9pc of government sector jobs set to be cut June 28, 2011 FEWER than one in 20 government sector jobs are set to be cut under the coalition’s austerity plans, a Westminster think tank claims today. Private sector job creation will be “far larger” than the reduction in government employees, the Centre for Policy Studies expects. Around 7.53m people work in government-provided services. The Office for Budget [...]
Willetts unveils university plans June 28, 2011 PROPOSED changes to higher education were cautiously welcomed by business groups yesterday. Universities minister David Willetts unveiled a white paper that could see universities forced to reveal how students on each course have fared subsequently in the jobs market. Students would also be able to access information on courses such as the number of hours [...]
Current account deficit narrows June 28, 2011 BRITAIN’S current account gap narrowed to £9.4bn in the first three months of the year, official data revealed yesterday. The deficit was down from an upwardly revised £13bn in the final quarter of 2010. The news came as a surprise to some economists who had expected a sharper decline in the UK’s balance of payments [...]
German consumer sentiment rises June 28, 2011 Morale on the German high street is set to rebound in July, with the GfK consumer confidence index edging up from 5.6 to 5.7, reversing four months of declines. The turnaround is partly due to a 2.5 per cent drop in fuel prices in June, economists at ING said yesterday. However, German consumer price index [...]
US consumer morale in a slump June 28, 2011 US consumer confidence fell in June to the lowest point since November 2010, a report showed yesterday. The Conference Board, an industry group, said its index of consumer attitudes fell to 58.5 from a revised 61.7 the month before.
Shock upturn in US house prices June 28, 2011 American house prices may be on the verge of bottoming out, according to surprising figures from the Standard and Poor’s Case-Shiller index. In 10 US cities prices were flat from April to March, on a seasonally-adjusted basis, while some unadjusted prices actually rose.
Centrica says gas costs are hitting profit June 28, 2011 BRITISH energy giant Centrica has said its profits in the first half of 2011 will be lower than last year, and hinted that it could raise household bills to help offset this drop. Centrica said UK residential energy will deliver just half the operating profits that it did in 2010, blaming higher commodity and operating [...]
Customers go cold over energy price hikes June 28, 2011 Energy companies measured a drop in buzz earlier in June as it was announced that Scottish Power would be increasing its prices in August, with other companies expected to follow suit and announce increases in the coming weeks. Feeling the pinch from the significant increase in wholesale prices for gas and electricity, plus the apparent [...]
Serco aims for revenues of £5bn next year despite UK uncertainty June 28, 2011 OUTSOURCING group Serco expects its revenues to hit £5bn by the end of 2012, it said in a pre-close statement yesterday. The firm, which operates immigration centres, health services and the Docklands Light Railway, said it expects good organic growth through the year, giving an adjusted operating profit margin of 6.3 per cent. But the [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS June 28, 2011 Glendevon King Asset Management Dr Percy Barnevik (pictured) and Dr Kurt Moosmann have been appointed to the newly created advisory board of the independent fixed income boutique, following the recent appointment of Richard Kendall as chief executive. Barnevik has served as chairman or a board member of global businesses including General Motors, AstraZeneca and Skanska, [...]
