Best Buy to halt its UK expansion June 12, 2011 BEST BUY may be forced to shelve plans to open a string of “Big Box” UK retail stores amid sliding demand for high price consumer electronics. The American retailer, which entered into a European partnership with Carphone Warehouse in 2008, is understood to be pressing ahead with plans to open three new stores this year [...]
CBI: Coalition must tackle jobs deficit June 12, 2011 RECESSION has uncovered the true degree of ingrained unemployment in the UK, the Confederation for British Industry (CBI) will announce today. Two million children grow up in homes without a working adult, while 1.4m people have received out-of-work benefits for nine of the last 10 years, the CBI has found. “The boom years before the [...]
Leahy invests in tech firm June 12, 2011 FORMER Tesco boss Sir Terry Leahy has invested £2m of his personal wealth into a British software startup. He has bought a ten per cent stake in MetaPack, a small technology firm that co-ordinates customer deliveries for several big retailers. The company counts Sir Terry’s former employer, from which he stood down as chief executive [...]
CVC in talks to take stake in Branson’s Virgin Active gyms June 12, 2011 PRIVATE equity firm CVC Capital Partners is poised to take a significant stake in Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Active gym chain, in a deal valued at £1bn. The buyout house is in exclusive deal talks with the company to buy a significant shareholding. It is not known whether it will take a controlling stake. CVC [...]
Israel’s Stanley Fischer launches bid for IMF job June 12, 2011 BANK of Israel governor Stanley Fischer said at the weekend he would run for the top job at the International Monetary Fund, presenting a potential serious challenge to front-runner Christine Lagarde. Fischer, also competing with Mexican central bank chief Agustin Carstens, had said the IMF post was one of the best jobs in the international [...]
City honoured in the Queen’s birthday list June 12, 2011 BANK of England governor Mervyn King has topped a list of City figures recognised for their services to British business, banking and finance in the Queen’s birthday honours list. This year’s honours list is weighted heavily towards recognising the contribution of the City. This is partly due to it being seen as politically unpalatable for [...]
London defies UK slowdown June 12, 2011 LONDON was the only British region to experience an accelerated growth in May, according to a Lloyds TSB and Markit study released today. A purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for the capital moved up to 54, from 53.7 in April. All figures over 50 indicate growth. The figures largely reflect a slowdown in growth across the [...]
Price pressures remain in pipeline for consumers June 12, 2011 CONSUMER price inflation is expected to have remained at 4.5 per cent last month, level with April’s two and half year high — with official figures set to confirm the latest rate tomorrow. Stubborn price pressures will put further strain on the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee, despite governor Mervyn King admitting that the [...]
Regulation is the top risk to global business June 12, 2011 UNCERTAINTY around regulation and compliance is the main risk to businesses throughout the world, a survey by Ernst and Young revealed today. While British companies ranked the need to cut costs as their main concern, regulations were the main concern for banking firms in the UK. The expansion of government was considered a greater threat [...]
ECONOMISTS’ VIEWS: DID INFLATION STICK LAST MONTH? June 12, 2011 PHILIP RUSH | NOMURA “We forecast CPI inflation at 4.5 per cent year on year, but for RPI inflation to rise to 5.5 per cent. CPI is likely to be softened by payback from April’s surge in transport costs, compounded by lower oil prices. But we expect this to be offset by higher food and [...]
