Hollande hit in by-elections December 17, 2012 France’s opposition conservative party won three by-elections yesterday despite its own internal problems, in the latest sign of trouble for Socialist President Francois Hollande. The UMP won a hat-trick of by-elections, including a seat previously held by the ruling Socialist party. “These elections constitute a setback for the government which has reacted so badly to [...]
4G bidders to be outed as hopes rise for windfall December 17, 2012 OFCOM is this week expected to reveal the bidders for an auction of 4G spectrum, in the next step of a process that could earn the Treasury far more than originally expected. George Osborne pencilled in a sum of £3.5bn in his Autumn Statement, but recent auctions in other countries have beaten forecasts, as the [...]
Abe opens door to radical policy with landslide Japanese victory December 16, 2012 THE DOOR to unlimited Japanese monetary stimulus was nudged further open yesterday as Shinzo Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) re-took parliament in a landslide. The right-leaning LDP took almost 300 out of 480 seats in the lower house, according to exit polls, which means it can exert a two-thirds majority with ally New Komeito, and [...]
Boris Johnson urges EU vote before 2015 December 16, 2012 THE government should call a referendum on the EU before 2015, Boris Johnson said yesterday, adding that an exit from Europe would not “be the end of the world”. Speaking yesterday to BBC 1’s The Andrew Marr Show, the London mayor said it would be “fantastic” to speed up the timetable and schedule a referendum [...]
Facebook IPO made me uneasy, says Prince Alwaleed December 16, 2012 INFLUENTIAL Saudi investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal has revealed that he was uneasy about Facebook’s initial public offering (IPO), saying the company was not a strong candidate for growth. The billionaire declined to invest in Mark Zuckerberg’s company when it floated in May at $38 a share, a price which fell to below half that [...]
Cable reveals new patent system plans December 16, 2012 BUSINESS secretary Vince Cable will today unveil new intellectual property proposals in a bid to encourage innovation. The Liberal Democrat MP will put forward a range of changes to how the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) operates. These will include a “superfast” system for awarding patents and a crackdown on intellectual property crime. “Our creativity, our [...]
New BoE boss Carney named best banker December 16, 2012 NEWLY-appointed Bank of England governor Mark Carney has topped a survey grading the performance of the world’s cental bankers over the past 12 months. Canadian Carney, a former Goldman Sachs director, scored 81 out of a possible 100, with 68 per cent giving him an A or B grade, according to the Wall Street Journal’s [...]
Singapore and Europe agree free trade deal December 16, 2012 THE EUROPEAN Union and Singapore agreed to terms of a free-trade deal yestrday, a move that should further open the Asian country’s markets for financial services and make it easier for carmakers to export there. “We have finalised the negotiations, and I’m very pleased with the result,” said EU trade commissioner Karel De Gucht. The [...]
Parliamentary banking standards commission to unveil a tough stance on bank ring-fencing December 16, 2012 A HEAVYWEIGHT parliamentary committee on banking standards will this week unveil a hardline stance on proposals to ring-fence the retail banking operations of high street banks from their investment banking activities. The commission on banking standards – comprised of big hitters including former chancellor Lord Lawson, the future Archbishop of Canterbury Reverend Justin Welby and [...]
Commodity trading giant Trafigura mulls London float of Puma December 16, 2012 COMMODITY trading giant Trafigura is mulling plans to join its Swiss-based rival Glencore and float part of its business on the London Stock Exchange. Trafigura, a top three oil trader and the second biggest metals trader behind Glencore, yesterday said it was still weighing up an initial public offering of its oil subsidiary Puma Energy [...]
