Hawks, hares and tortoises in Scandinavia February 9, 2010 SCANDINAVIAN economies managed a soft landing during the global financial crisis. Unemployment and GDP held up strongly in Norway, and Sweden’s economy is starting to accelerate. With the Swedish central bank expected to strike a more hawkish tone when it meets later this week, now is a good time to pit the two currencies against [...]
The Tipster February 9, 2010 THE US dollar has performed strongly against the euro and sterling but the greenback hasn’t managed to keep up the strong performance against the yen; it has fallen by 5 per cent against the Japanese currency so far this year. If we see a dip back below ¥90 this could provide a good buying opportunity [...]
Out of office February 9, 2010 REALLY OLD, LIKE FORTY FIVE This new play by Tamsin Oglesby is an imaginative and rather moving look at the issue of old age. While Alan Bennett’s The Habit of Art addresses ageing from a different angle in the National’s Lyttleton theatre next door, Oglesby takes a queasy look into a future in which people [...]
There can be no happy ending for the euro February 9, 2010 JUST as the mythical Cassandra predicted the destruction of Troy at the hands of the ancient Greeks, her modern-day counterparts are watching as Athens’ fiscal troubles wreak the very foundations of the European currency union – just as they predicted nine years ago when the Hellenic Republic was first admitted to the Eurozone. Questions about [...]
Despite its fiscal weakness, dollar remains attractive February 9, 2010 THE US dollar has staged an impressive rally against the euro and sterling. The US is benefiting from safe haven flows as investors ditch the euro over fears of a sovereign debt crisis for Greece that could spread to Portugal, Spain and even to the UK. But are the US’s finances actually any better than [...]
The lasting legacy of Toyota’s Prius problem will be more green cars February 9, 2010 WHAT do Salma Hayek, Prince Charles, Brad Pitt and Donny Osmond all have in common? The answer is that they are among the celebrities to have bought a Toyota Prius. Since it was unveiled in the late Nineties, the car has been the must-have status symbol for celebrities to prove their environmental credentials. This has, [...]
BUGS SHOULD NOT GIVE UP ON GOLD YET February 9, 2010 AS GOLD fell sharply last week while the dollar rose, it attracted a chorus of I-told-you-so critics who pointed to gold’s rapid decline as proof that the metal was a poor source of safety in times of market turbulence. In the short term, the critics are correct. At present the dollar, not gold, is the [...]
City close on Reds in scrap for top four February 9, 2010 MANCHESTER City boss Roberto Mancini hailed new-boy Adam Johnson after the deadline-day signing inspired the Blues to take another step towards their dream of a Champions League spot. Strike duo Carlos Tevez and Emmanuel Adebayor scored the goals for the home side but it was deadline-day signing Johnson who caught the eye on his full [...]
Angry Wenger hits back after Ballack jibe February 9, 2010 ARSENE WENGER has angrily hit out at the British media, accusing them of continually twisting his words. The Arsenal boss felt he was misquoted after his side’s 2-0 defeat to title rivals Chelsea on Sunday when he congratulated the Blues on their victory before adding: “we didn’t get a demonstration of football”. Chelsea midfielder Michael [...]
THE LONDON REPORT February 9, 2010 BRITAIN’S top share index closed up yesterday, led higher by miners and banks, but lingering concerns over Europe’s fiscal problems weighed on sentiment. The FTSE 100 ended 19.51 points or 0.4 per cent ahead at 5,111.84, having hit a session high of 5,132.93. Metals prices regained some ground after sharp falls last week, helping mining [...]
