In an ecclesiastical home, heaven is a place on earth September 3, 2009 OKAY, so it might involve sleeping where an altar once was. Or perhaps a belltower, nave or vestry. It sounds ever so slightly scandalous, but ecclesiastic properties are recession-busting favourites, with architectural features that can’t be rivalled. In London, there’s a range of options – many of which are considered hip as well as high-end, [...]
FOCUS ON: ROCHESTER, KENT September 3, 2009 HIGH STREET, WOULDHAMPrice: £330,000Workers looking to escape the hubbub of the City for the pleasant and quiet Kentish countryside need look no further than this three-bedroom cottage in the heart of Wouldham, near Rochester – 50 minutes from Victoria by train. Originally the village forge, the house has exposed beams throughout and flagstone tiles in [...]
NEW YORK REPORT September 2, 2009 U S stocks fell yesterday as jitters about the economy prompted investors to unload shares for a fourth-straight day, despite a sharp drop in the previous session. Major indexes fluctuated between positive and negative territory throughout the day before closing in the red, with the S&P 500 index posting its worst losing streak since late [...]
THE LONDON REPORT September 2, 2009 THE benchmark share index closed flat yesterday as a retreat in financials and miners, triggered by weak US data, was offset by stronger energy stocks, after a “giant” oil find by BP. The FTSE 100 index ended down 2.15 points at 4,817.55, after it fell 1.8 per cent on Tuesday. US private employers cut 298,000 [...]
CITY VIEWS: CAN THE G20 SUMMIT ACHIEVE ANYTHING CONCRETE? September 2, 2009 MICHAEL SAMUELS LLOYD’S“Previous G20 summits have led to change but it will take the leading economies of the G7 to act and the others will follow. Gordon Brown wants changes to bonuses so let’s see if he can manage to get agreement on it. Sometimes it feels like a lot of hot air.” KATIE MAYCOCK [...]
Starbucks drinks to a recovery September 2, 2009 IF the coffee business is a barometer of consumer confidence, things may be picking up for the UK economy. Starbucks UK boss Darcy Willson–Rymes yesterday told City A.M. that over the last couple of months its UK coffee shops have sold more on a like–for–like basis than the same period the year before. The lift [...]
Cattles staff face axe as outlets shut September 2, 2009 DEBT-LADEN doorstep lender Cattles is preparing to wield the axe over 500 jobs, following the firm’s decision to shut 30 of its 180 Welcome Financial outlets. Cattles, which has £2.4bn of debts, said it plans to make cuts in its sales and support teams and has told 510 employees of the Welcome business that they [...]
Private USjob losses drop as productivity improves September 2, 2009 THE NUMBER of private sector jobs being lost in the US decreased in August to around half the rate of losses seen earlier this year, in a welcome sign the worst of the recessionary job cuts are over. Statistics from payroll company Automatic Data Processing (ADP) yesterday revealed that 298,000 jobs were lost last month, [...]
Construction PMI at 18 month high September 2, 2009 CONSTRUCTION activity contracted in August at its slowest pace in eighteen months, a leading survey showed yesterday, raising hopes that the economy will grow in the third quarter. The CIPS/Markit construction purchasing managers’ index (PMI) recorded 47.7 in August, compared to 47.0 in July. However, it remained well below the 50 mark, which signals growth. [...]
BP hails giant discovery in Gulf of Mexico September 2, 2009 OILmajor BP said yesterday it had made a “giant” discovery in the Gulf of Mexico, boosting hopes that oil firms can use the region to slash their dependence on the Middle East. The discovery of at least 3bn barrels of oil at the Tiber Prospect site was made after an unprecedented exploration effort, which saw [...]
