Weak service sector knocks recovery hopes July 4, 2012 GROWTH in the all-important services sector slowed to an eight-month low in June, according to influential survey data published yesterday, undermining hopes that the economy could come out of recession in the second quarter. Markit’s purchasing managers’ index (PMI) came in at 51.3 last month – down sharply from 53.3 in May, indicating a sharp [...]
Profitability dips at UK’s firms July 4, 2012 THE PROFITABILITY of British companies slipped slightly in the first three months of the year, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) released yesterday. The rate of return on private non-financial companies slipped 0.2 percentage points to 12.1 per cent in the first quarter – the lowest rate since mid-2010. However, when [...]
CITY VIEWS | ARE YOU MORE OR LESS OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THE UK ECONOMY THAN AT THE START OF THE YEAR? July 4, 2012 DAVID GOULD METRO BANK “I was more optimistic about the UK economy before recent events occurred, but Barclays has changed that. I’m hoping as new regulation comes in we’ll start to get trust back in the economy. SPENCER JONES LLOYDS “I’m more optimistic but mainly because my personal situation is slightly better than it was [...]
CITY A.M. | OUR SHADOW MPC VOTES 7-2 FOR MORE EASING July 4, 2012 THE BANK of England is already on course to splash £325bn on asset purchases as it strives to stimulate a flat and endangered economic recovery. Yet many economists feel the situation is bad enough to warrant even more quantitative easing (QE). David Kern of the British Chambers of Commerce yesterday warned that more QE “is [...]
Mini iPad eyed by Apple as it loses HTC battle July 4, 2012 US technology giant Apple yesterday lost a key London court ruling against Taiwan’s HTC, just as reports emerged that its hotly anticipated smaller and cheaper iPad would be on sale by the end of the year. The production of Apple’s latest iPad is already under way, according to the Wall Street Journal. The new model [...]
George Entwistle named the fifteenth BBC director general July 4, 2012 THE BBC yesterday appointed an insider as its new director general who will take the helm when Mark Thompson retires from the job later this year. George Entwistle, 49, pipped other front-runners Caroline Thomson, BBC chief operating officer, and Ed Richards, boss of Ofcom, to the post. Head since last year of BBC Vision, where [...]
Clegg pushes co-op firm model July 4, 2012 Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg yesterday unveiled a new professional body – the Institute for Employee Ownership – and a FTSE benchmark for companies run as employee partnerships, following a report on them by employment lawyer Graeme Nuttall.
Aegis practises its French July 4, 2012 Aegis has built up its French footprint with the purchase of six companies formerly owned by W Garden and others, with assets worth €5m (£4m). The acquisitions will merge into Aegis’ iProspect operations in France in the third quarter of this year.
Advertising spend on the up July 4, 2012 Advertising spend increased by 1.1 per cent in the first quarter of this year despite economic turbulence, according to the Advertising Association. And the prognosis is positive, with expenditure expected to improve over the rest of the year, growing 2.5 per cent in 2012 and 4.4 per cent next year.
Canada boosts Travelzest’s profits July 4, 2012 Upmarket travel operator Travelzest yesterday posted a rise in half-year profits after a strong performance in Canada. Pre-tax profit jumped to £1.9m in the period, compared to £884,000 a year earlier.
