FSA forces Scottish Equitable to refund £60m to customers December 16, 2010 LIFE insurer Scottish Equitable has been fined £2.8m and ordered to pay £60m in compensation to several hundred thousand policymakers after a series of administrative failures caused “significant customer detriment.” The Financial Services Authority (FSA) said yesterday that the company was guilty of a series of errors including incorrect pensions calculations, not issuing thousands of [...]
Inflation fear up, but Posen unconcerned December 16, 2010 SUPPORTERS of a rise in interest rates were compared to “global warming deniers” yesterday by a leading Bank of England rate setter. Adam Posen said that judging the economy on “temporary” high inflation and growth levels was like denying global warming “every time we had a bad winter.” Expecting economic conditions to continue was similar [...]
Eurozone growth slightly down December 16, 2010 Economic growth in the Eurozone has been marginally slower this month than in November, according to data released yesterday. The Markit Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), which measures activity in both manufacturing and service sectors, dropped by half a point to 55. All figures over 50 signal an expansion in activity. Germany’s boom was reflected in [...]
FTSE treads water as fears over European debts weigh December 16, 2010 BRITAIN’S top shares closed little changed yesterday as persistent concerns over Europe’s debt problems capped moves on the upside while BP fell after the US government launched a lawsuit over the Gulf oil spill. The FTSE 100 ended down 1.06 points at 5,881.12. The index ebbed away from an intra-day high of 5,907.10, with analysts [...]
Jobless claims decline in US December 16, 2010 The number of unemployment benefit claimants fell in the US for the week ending 11 December, it was announced yesterday. The number of claims totalled 420,000, down from a revised 423,000 the week before, slightly exceeding expectations. There was also an increase in the number of new houses being constructed in November, up to an [...]
Irish economy in modest growth December 16, 2010 The Irish economy grew by 0.5 per cent in the three months to September, it was announced yesterday. The expansion goes some way to reversing the one per cent fall in GDP experienced in the second quarter of the year, as the troubled country looks to recover.
Swiss stick with ultra low rates December 16, 2010 The Swiss national bank left interest rates at 0.25 per cent yesterday, in a move described as “ultra dovish” by Jonathan Loynes of Capital Economics.
Wall St boosted by FedEx’s bullish view December 16, 2010 US stocks, bucking a trend of late-day selloffs, ended higher yesterday as economic bellwether FedEx offered a bullish profit outlook that augured well for broad growth. Stocks that performed well in 2010 were among yesterday’s biggest gainers as investors sought to boost returns by the year’s end. Advancing stocks outnumbered decliners by more than two [...]
CITY VIEWS: ARE YOU WORRIED ABOUT RISING INFLATION? December 16, 2010 TAREK SOLOMAN | RBS “I don’t worry about inflation for myself, as it won’t really affect my purchasing power. I do worry about the basics, though. And I worry that inflation will push up interest rates.” CEDRIC RUFFIER | MONTREAL ASSOCIATES “Inflation does not affect me personally. For people in need, though, the basic necessities [...]
Cut down your energy bills December 16, 2010 IT HAS been a sad few weeks for anyone with a gas or electricity bill to pay. Last week, Npower announced plans to increase electricity and gas prices by 5.1 per cent, bringing to four the number of big energy companies hiking rates this Christmas, bringing the average household’s bill to £1,210. And just yesterday, [...]
