Dow rises over 200 on possible six week extension to US debt ceiling October 10, 2013 John Boehner will ask Repulibcans for a six week increase to the US' $16.7 trillion debt ceiling, according to the AP. With only seven days left until the present debt deadline – that's seen as extremely positive by markets. The Dow is now up over 200 points. So we're back in Dow over 15,000 territory [...]
Mobile operators clash with Ofcom over price hike October 10, 2013 Regulator Ofcom may introduce new licensing fees which could quadruple the cost of using existing mobile spectrum. Speaking to the BBC operators said the increase was "excessive" and Vodafone said it was "disappointed" with the proposals. Ofcom believes the increase was justified based on comparable fees in other European countries. The current prices for the [...]
This week’s US jobless claims are horrible October 10, 2013 Things just aren't pretty in the US right now. And forgetting the shutdown for a moment – the Federal Reserve will have to deal with some nasty jobs numbers too. Initial jobless claims have jumped from 308,000 to 374,000 this week. That's a huge rise, and much higher than the increase to 310,000 expected. This [...]
US treasury secretary Lew says a default would be awful for markets October 10, 2013 Treasury secretary Jack Lew has dismissed a popular alternative to a debt ceiling raise for the US and suggests that a default on debt interest payments could wreak financial havoc. Lew says that the possibility of the US failing to pay what it owes will hurt stocks, short-term Treasury securities and the dollar. Not great [...]
Bank of England holds policy for 16th month October 10, 2013 The Bank of England has held rates and asset purchases for a 16th month. It's safe to say that everyone was expecting this. I would put the probability of the BOE moving either rates or asset purchases today at slightly less than the UK joining the euro this year — World First (@World_First) October 10, [...]
Gold prices to continue losses to 2014 says Morgan Stanley October 10, 2013 Morgan Stanley has forecast a continues further fall in the price of gold into 2014 as the Federal Reserve begins the process of tapering its bond buying programme. Morgan Stanley analyst, Joel Crane, speaking in a video report said: We recommend staying away from gold at this point in the cycle. Our forecast profile heading [...]
Pictures: Westminster has gone to the dogs October 10, 2013 Take a paws from your day to have a look at these Westminster pooches. It's the day of the Westminster Dog of the Year competition (you can see the competitors here). In aid of promoting responsible dog ownership, Clarissa Bladiwn, chief executive of Dogs Trust says that the contest is more than just a beauty [...]
Two sovereign wealth funds expected to receive Royal Mail shares October 10, 2013 While sovereign wealth funds are expected to be allocated large numbers of Royal Mail shares, according to Sky News. Sky's City editor Mark Kleinman says that Kuwait and Singapore-based wealth funds are among those which have share orders worth "hundreds of millions of pounds". His sources suggest that the two top funds are expected to [...]
Red Cross report slams European austerity October 10, 2013 In a report obtained by the Guardian, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies has condemned European governments response to the debt crisis which began four years ago. The 68 page report says: Whilst other continents successfully reduce poverty, Europe adds to it. As the economic crisis has planted its roots, millions [...]
Greek unemployment is lower than thought but still on the rise October 10, 2013 The Greek unemployment rate is a little lower than thought in July, but that's largely due to revisions to the month before. Turns out the statisticians now think that unemployment was at 27.5 per cent in June – not 27.9 per cent. That means the newly unemployment rate of 27.6 per cent in July is [...]
