Civil service sees jobs slashed and below inflation pay rises October 24, 2012 THE GOVERNMENT has made good on its plans to streamline Whitehall, official data out yesterday showed. Civil service employment was cut 34,621 between 2011 and 2012, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed, bringing the total down seven per cent from 508,433 to 463,812. “We are reforming the Civil Service so it will be smaller, [...]
Business lobby calls for shift to private sector October 24, 2012 THE COUNTRY’S most prominent business lobby today proposed a raft of measures designed to rebalance the economy away from the public sector in order to create private sector growth. In a report centred around what it called “the geography of growth,” the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) made the case for focused localist measures, intended to [...]
Developed countries take more tax as global economy recovers October 24, 2012 TAX takes across developed countries continued to slowly recover from lows hit during the depths of the recession, data revealed yesterday. Average tax revenue across rich countries climbed to 34 per cent of GDP in 2011, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said yesterday, up from 33.8 per cent in 2010 – but [...]
CEBR expects wages to stay flat for years October 24, 2012 WAGE growth will be sluggish for years into the future, a think tank predicted today, due to slack in the labour market. Average gross earnings will grow just 1.5 per cent over 2012 as a whole, the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) predicted, before growing around 2.2 per cent in 2013. Even by [...]
Chinese factory slowdown may have bottomed out in October October 24, 2012 THE manufacturing slowdown in China could have bottomed out in October, business survey data from Markit suggested yesterday, but the sector is still in the doldrums. China’s manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) – a prominent business survey correlated with GDP – climbed to 49.1 in October, from 47.9 in September, reaching its highest level for [...]
Do you think the UK economy is improving? October 24, 2012 ROMANA MURPHY | BT I think the economy has improved in the sense that it is more stable. But I think we have to get used to this being the new reality in terms of not expecting huge growth year-on-year and in terms of people seeking value for money. MATT BERG | SHAREFORCE LTD I [...]
National Express trading lifted by resilient UK rail and bus unit October 24, 2012 TRANSPORT group National Express Group said it had traded well in its third quarter, driven by resilient performances from its UK bus and rail businesses. The company yesterday reported that its UK rail unit had delivered an “excellent operational performance” so far this year and that it was studying opportunities for expansion in the German [...]
AngloGold begins process to sack 12,000 striking miners October 24, 2012 GOLD miner AngloGold Ashanti yesterday started the process to dismiss 12,000 wildcat strikers, as they failed to respond to an ultimatum to return to work. The South African bullion producer felt it was “left with little choice” but to begin dismissals for illegally striking workers at its West Wits operations. AngloGold yesterday said it remained [...]
Peugeot gets state rescue as crisis deepens October 24, 2012 PSA PEUGEOT Citroen yesterday unveiled a government-backed refinancing deal for its lending arm as the struggling French automaker’s financial position deteriorated further, sending its stock to historic lows. Europe’s second-biggest automaker said it was close to an agreement with creditor banks on €11.5bn (£9.2bn) of refinancing and had won state guarantees on €7bn in further [...]
Volvo expects low growth as Volkswagen sees profits slump October 24, 2012 WORLD number two truck maker Volvo said yesterday it expects no growth in European and US markets next year, as Europe’s biggest auto maker Volkswagen revealed its third-quarter profit had fallen by a fifth. Volkswagen’s operating profit dropped to €2.34bn (£1.89bn) in the third quarter from €2.89bn a year earlier, the company said. That was [...]
