Credit Suisse spends $425m on York Capital September 14, 2010 CREDIT Suisse said yesterday it has bought a minority interest in hedge fund York Capital for $425m (£273.3m), following a year of talks. The stake, thought to be around 30 per cent, is a non-controlling interest, and Credit Suisse won’t invest in any of York’s funds. The bank has been in touch with US authorities [...]
Greece raises €1.17bn in key debt auction September 14, 2010 INVESTORS across Europe breathed a sigh of relief yesterday as Greece successfully tapped the capital markets for over €1bn (£836.6m) in a debt auction. Analysts were encouraged by the success of the auction, despite the fact that the bonds in question were short-term six-month Treasury bills, for which Greece had to pay a high yield [...]
Swiss Re says Basel III will aid reinsurers September 14, 2010 THE NEW rules on banking capital are good news for reinsurance companies, the chief economist at reinsurer Swiss Re said yesterday. “Banks’ capital charges have been rightly raised by quite a bit. At the centre of the crisis were the banks, not the insurers,” said Thomas Hess. Banks have been providing hybrid capital and other [...]
Surge in food prices keeps inflation high September 14, 2010 HEADLINE annual inflation held steady at 3.1 per cent in August as sharp rises in the cost of air fares, clothing and food prices offset softer petrol prices, official figures revealed yesterday. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said that inflation rose 0.5 per cent between July and August but that the annual rate remained [...]
US August retail sales gain to ease fears of a new recession September 14, 2010 Sales at US retailers posted their largest gain in five months in August on strong receipts at gasoline stations and clothing outlets, further assuaging fears of a double-dip recession. The Commerce Department yesterday said total retail sales rose 0.4 per cent following a revised 0.3 per cent rise in July. It was the second straight [...]
State workers earning £7k more than those in the private sector September 14, 2010 PUBLIC sector workers are paid an average of £7,000 a year more than their private sector counterparts once pension contributions are taken into account, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The ONS September Economic & Labour Market Review found state employees earn an average of £615 a week, including pension provision, compared with [...]
A law of unintended consequences haunts those who rewrite the rules September 14, 2010 WHEN rival financial centres rewrote their rulebooks to their own disadvantage, London pounced. If current proposals are mishandled, the City’s competitors will be more than ready for the chance to steal back some of the UK’s financial thunder. In the last half-century, America’s regulators have unwittingly been some of the City’s best friends. Their generosity [...]
Plans to reform the tripartite system have opened a new can of worms September 14, 2010 WHEN George Osborne set about dismantling the tripartite regulatory system, he said the reforms would help prevent another banking crisis. But his decision to hand responsibility for the UK listing authority (UKLA) to the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) could end up causing even bigger problems. The FRC is controlled by Vince Cable’s business department, whereas [...]
Bank charges are customers’ biggest gripe September 14, 2010 At present – when consumer confidence in financial institutions is at its lowest ebb for over 60 years – there is good reason to reevaluate retail banks’ relationship with their customers at its most fundamental level: the current account. The arrival of service-focused Metrobank and Santander’s recent cash incentive to switch providers have sparked consumer [...]
Vodafone will appeal Indian tax decision September 14, 2010 Vodafone has filed an appeal with India’s Supreme Court after its petition over a tax feud with authorities was dismissed. The lower court ruled that the Indian tax system has jurisdiction over tax bills in cross-border mergers. Vodafone, which is fighting a tax bill in India from its 2007 purchase of Hutchison Whampoa’s mobile business [...]
