Greece chooses euro champion Stournaras as finance minister June 26, 2012 GREECE yesterday named liberal economist Yannis Stournaras as its new finance minister, replacing Vassilis Rapanos who quit on Monday after less than a week in the job. Stournaras, an economics professor at the University of Athens and the head of the influential IOBE think-tank, has the nickname Mr Euro in Greece for his role in [...]
France increases minimum wage June 26, 2012 France’s new government announced a cosmetic two per cent increase in the minimum wage yesterday as it seeks to soften the blow from tax hikes and spending freezes to the struggling economy. President Francois Hollande’s Socialist government has pledged to cut the public deficit to 4.5 per cent of gross domestic product this year from [...]
Egan-Jones cuts German outlook June 26, 2012 Credit ratings agency Egan-Jones last night cut Germany’s rating to A-plus with a negative outlook from AA-minus, saying that whether or not Greece or other Eurozone members exit the monetary union, Germany will be left with “massive” additional, uncollectible receivables. The downgrade came as GfK said German consumer confidence is holding up, with its household [...]
Italy offers state support to MPS June 26, 2012 Italy yesterday offered up to €2bn (£1.6bn) to plug a capital gap in the bank Monte dei Paschi di Siena, the second time in three years the state has had to bail out the world’s oldest bank. Rome said it was ready to underwrite special bonds issued by the bank to plug a capital shortfall [...]
King demands full inquiry into NatWest fiasco June 26, 2012 SIR MERVYN King yesterday demanded that a formal investigation be launched into the RBS and NatWest technical glitch, adding to pressure on the bank and its chief executive Stephen Hester. “Once the difficulties are over, we will need the FSA to carry out a very detailed investigation,” King argued, with the focus on “first of [...]
Twitter effect hits brands as the impact on consumer perception becomes clear June 26, 2012 WHETHER NatWest’s recent computer problems are over remains to be seen, but what is already obvious is the damage that is being done to perception of the brand. YouGov SoMA (Social Media Analysis tool) looks at the impact that campaigns or crises have on social media. While an average day generates tweets about NatWest that [...]
New reporting template to hit banks next year June 26, 2012 INTERNATIONAL regulators said yesterday that banks must reveal “all the components” of their capital from 30 June next year, as their progress in building up buffers is monitored by authorities. The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision – which consists of regulators from 27 countries including the UK, Germany, China and the US – wants to [...]
HOW WILL THE NEW SYSTEM WORK? June 26, 2012 A disclosure template that the banks must use from 1 January 2018 has been set out. This is the date from which the Basel III requirements will be set in stone, and when the banks’ permitted period of transition comes to an end. Until then, there is a modified version of the template that banks [...]
ASIL NADIR DENIES POLLY PECK THEFT June 26, 2012 POLLY Peck tycoon Asil Nadir yesterday told the Old Bailey he was a “broken man” with no chance of a fair trial when he left the UK in 1993. The 71-year-old Cypriot has denied stealing nearly £150m from Polly Peck and said the company was never insolvent.
Carpetright reports signs of sales growth June 26, 2012 BRITAIN’S biggest floor coverings retailer Carpetright’s full-year underlying profit fell by 76 per cent, weighed down by weaker UK sales, the firm announced yesterday. But FTSE 250-listed shares in Carpetright, which have fallen four per cent over the past 12 months, rose nearly five per cent as investors took comfort from an upbeat outlook and [...]
