Minerva values rise but lettings remain elusive February 22, 2011 PROPERTY developer Minerva remained tight-lipped over possible tenants for its Walbrook and St Botolph developments yesterday, as it reported a 6.2 per cent rise in net asset value. The London-focused firm made £10.4m profit in the last six months of 2010, while the value of its properties rose 3.2 per cent to £1.2bn “Our short [...]
Established stocks take back mantle February 22, 2011 STOCKS in developed markets have rallied in the opening weeks of this year, driven by more optimistic forecasts from the US and Europe. Despite a knock to equities from the recent uprisings in the Middle East, developed country markets are attracting investors more than emerging markets, for the first time since 2007. The MSCI World [...]
Three year high for US morale February 22, 2011 AMERICAN consumers are the most upbeat they have been since February 2008 as the US economy continues to rebound, official data showed yesterday. “Rising equity prices, falling unemployment and the boost to disposable incomes from the payroll tax cut are more than offsetting the effects of higher gasoline prices and lower house prices,” commented Paul [...]
Euro holds strong as ECB weighs up inflation risks February 22, 2011 THE euro held up against the dollar yesterday, as chaos in Libya was offset by hawkish rhetoric from a senior European Central Bank official. Having dropped as much as one per cent against the dollar as the Libyan crisis escalated, the euro recovered to test $1.37 (£0.85) following the comments by ECB policymaker Yves Mersch. [...]
Old people need to share burden of cuts: think tank February 22, 2011 PUBLIC finances could save £16bn a year if the government reduced state entitlements for older people, the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) will announce today. Universal benefits – provided to everyone, including the rich – such as winter fuel allowance should be abolished, the influential Westminster-based think tank is expected to say. By 2015-16, £2.1bn [...]
CITY VIEWS: SHOULD STATE BENEFITS FOR THE ELDERLY BE RINGFENCED?? February 22, 2011 PETER HESKETH | INSURANCE BROKER “I strongly believe pensioners who need benefits should get them. But there are those who just don’t need them and so in some cases they should be revised and means tested.” ALEX KENNEDY | INSURANCE BROKER “Top earners work for over 20 years and pay a considerable amount of tax- [...]
Food inflation fears grow in UK February 22, 2011 Over nine out of ten shoppers expect further food price inflation in the next 12 months, grocery research firm IGD said yesterday. Price pressure are increasingly feared by consumers, its survey showed. A third of respondents believe food will become “much more expensive” in the next year. Last October, just 19 per cent feared “much [...]
German consumer outlook rises February 22, 2011 German consumer confidence has risen for the ninth straight month, the widely regarded Gfk survey revealed yesterday. The forward-looking index rose from 5.8 this month to six points for March – its highest reading since October 2007, prior to the financial crisis. “While Germany’s recovery has been driven largely by exports and investment, consumer spending [...]
Belgian confidence gets a boost February 22, 2011 Business morale in Belgium continued to rise this month, its central bank said yesterday. The headline business confidence index surprised economists by leaping from 4.5 last month to 5.8 in February – its highest level since July 2007. Belgium’s construction sector bounced back to a positive score of five points in the index, from January [...]
Pendragon in profit surge after job cuts February 22, 2011 CAR dealership group Pendragon said yesterday its profit had doubled after axing more than 600 jobs. The UK’s largest independent operator of franchised car dealerships – including –?Evans Halshaw and Stratstone – posted underlying pre-tax profits of £25.2m in the year to 31 December. The company, which sells premium models such as Maserati and Mercedes-Benz [...]
