Spain trying to get its casa in order: Country’s debt may shoot past IMF estimates September 16, 2013 Spain is still in recession, but could be turning the corner and returning to growth. The country still needs a strong recovery to reduce unemployment and avoid higher public sector debt according to a new note from Capital Economics. Roger Bootle, Capital Economics: Thanks to the ECB’s OMT programme, government bond yields are back to [...]
ECB’s Draghi says Eurozone recovery is still young and fragile September 16, 2013 European Central Bank (ECB) president Mario Draghi has said that the Eurozone economy remains fragile, and that unemployment is far too high. The central bank chief said that the area has made progress, but this is not yet fully reflected in the cost of borrowing. Now he's pushes for growth with a "stable foundation, saying [...]
Markets seeing a Larry rally as Summers announces he won’t contend Fed job September 16, 2013 An announcement by Larry Summers that he won't be contesting the role of Federal Reserve chairman has sent the dollar down and US stock futures up. Markets are now expecting a more dovish chairman (although Summers is by no means a hawk), and the favourite is Janet Yellen. Kit Juckes, Societe Generale: Five (long) years [...]
Any Other Business – 16/09 September 15, 2013 The old saying that sex sells, is apparently not the case for the gentlemen in the City of London. Based on prescription statistics released by NHS GP surgeries, the Sunday Times has found that the Square Mile boasts the lowest prescriptions for anti-impotence drug Viagra compared to men in other parts of the UK. The [...]
Engineer Kentz is confident of standalone prospects as two bidders disappear in as many days September 13, 2013 Engineer Kentz has released an update after German M+W has issued no further takeover proposals for the firm (release). That comes after Amec withdrew interest yesterday. Since its announcement of 19 August 2013, Kentz can confirm that it received no further proposals from either Amec plc or M+W. The Company remains confident it can deliver [...]
Regulator fines AXA £1.8m for failing to give customers suitable investment advice September 13, 2013 AXA Wealth Services has been hit with a £1,802,000 fine by regulators "for failing to ensure it gave suitable investment advice to its customers." The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) investigated cases between September 2010 and April 2010 at branches of Clydesdale, Yorkshire Banks and West Bromwich Building Society. AXA sold approximately 37,000 investment products to [...]
Greymarket spreads suggest Twitter valuation of £6.6bn to £7.3bn September 13, 2013 Spreadbetters ETX Capital have set up a greymarket to price the float of social media company Twitter, with a current spread suggesting a valuation of between $10.5bn (£6.6bn) and $11.5bn (£7.3bn). Twitter is just seven years old, and already set to float for more than twice the value of 497 year old Royal Mail, illustrating [...]
Industry calls to limit lending won’t fix our bust housing system September 13, 2013 It's never encouraging when industry insiders fear that their own sector is overheating. That's the subtext from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), who've called on our central bank to cap annual house price inflation at five per cent. RICS suggest that the Bank of England should intervene, and attempt to curb lending in [...]
Glencore Xstrata makes progress with Zanaga iron ore project September 13, 2013 Mega miner Glencore Xstrata has announced that its Zanaga iron ore project, based in the Republic of Congo, will now proceed in a staged manner (release). They say that will result in a substantial reduction in the initial capital requirement. The Project is working closely with the Republic of Congo Government to advance its development [...]
Wetherspoons hit by rising tax bill as it expects “reasonable outcome” this year September 13, 2013 Wetherspoons chairman Tim Martin has slammed the "far higher taxes" imposed on pubs than on supermarkets in a comment on the chain's results today. Already, 10,000 pubs have closed and many others are suffering, through insufficient investment. In particular, there should be VAT equality for pubs, restaurants and supermarkets. Wetherspoon, along with many other pub [...]
