Why rivals are banking on Diamond’s downfall July 2, 2012 Whenever a banking scandal breaks in the City, be it rogue trade allegations at UBS, a massive trading loss at JP Morgan or the current Libor interest rates scandal, the first concern is for the reputation of the industry as a whole. But, investment bankers being possibly the most competitive bunch on the universe, the [...]
Cotton lawsuit hits Louis Dreyfus July 2, 2012 COMMODITY trading giant Louis Dreyfus has been sued by a former senior trader at rival Glencore, who alleges that Dreyfus illegally cornered the cotton market last year as prices tumbled from record highs. The trader, Mark Allen, accused Dreyfus of violating antitrust law by artificially inflating prices of Intercontinental Exchange cotton futures contracts expiring in [...]
Manufacturers report gloomy EU conditions July 2, 2012 EUROZONE manufacturing was hammered again by political and financial worries last month, according to survey data released by Markit yesterday. The overall purchasing managers’ index (PMI) remained at 45.1 for the Eurozone in June, slightly up from the preliminary estimate of 44.8, following the same pace of decline in May. The index records firms’ views [...]
Governor King calls for proactive Bank as QE bloats balance sheet July 2, 2012 BANK of England governor Sir Mervyn King has said it must continue to “pilot the economy” through tough times, as the Bank’s annual report revealed a £315.5bn balance sheet caused largely by quantitative easing (QE). Writing in the report, released yesterday, King defended the Bank’s loose monetary policy and new credit boosting policy, named the [...]
CITY VIEWS | SHOULD THE BANK OF ENGLAND CUT INTEREST RATES? July 2, 2012 PHILIP WASLING ADM INVESTOR SERVICES I think on balance they should keep the interest rates where they are. I don’t think it will stimulate spending at all. It’s not suddenly going to pour money into people’s pockets, unless mortgage rates come down on the back of it. TIM MILLS FIDELITY I can’t see the benefit [...]
Finns and Dutch cast doubts on Eurozone deal July 2, 2012 A EUROZONE rescue plan devised at last week’s crunch summit has been thrown into doubt, after the Finnish government said it would block the move along with the Dutch authorities. Leaders from the single currency area had announced that rescue funds could be used in a “flexible and efficient manner” to mitigate pressure on troubled [...]
ECB rejects Greece’s bailout negotiation July 2, 2012 THE GREEK government should stop wasting time and money trying to renegotiate its bailout deal, and focus on implementing reforms to get its economy back on a path to growth, a top European Central Bank (ECB) official said yesterday. Prime Minister Antonis Samaras wants to ease some of the tough austerity conditions attached to the [...]
Unemployment edges higher across single currency area July 2, 2012 JOBLESSNESS in the Eurozone rose to a new record high in May, pushed up by lay-offs in France, Spain and even stable Austria, as the two-and-a-half year debt crisis continued to eat away at the currency bloc’s fragile economy. Around 17.56m people were out of work in the 17-nation euro area in May, or 11.1 [...]
Sluggish sales in the UK force companies to turn to exports July 2, 2012 WEAK domestic demand is prompting businesses to increasingly look abroad for new sales, according to figures released this morning by the British Chambers of Commerce. The service sector has reported its highest level of forward-looking export orders since the start of 2007 – prior to the credit crunch – the Chambers (BCC) said today. “While [...]
France’s audit confirms hole July 2, 2012 FRANCE will have to find between €6bn and €10bn this year and a massive €33bn in 2013 to meet its European deficit targets, or risk unnerving financial markets, the state auditor told the new Socialist government yesterday. Responding to President Francois Hollande’s request for a thorough review of state finances, the audit said a revenue [...]
