British mortgage sales decline across the board August 31, 2011 MORTGAGE sales in the year to April sank to their lowest rate since the Financial Services Authority (FSA) began gathering the figures in 2005, it emerged yesterday. “Overall, mortgage sales declined by seven per cent from 2009-10 to 2010-11,” the FSA said. The decline was across the board, with sales of mortgages to first-time buyers, [...]
House price slump is already upon us August 30, 2011 HOUSE prices remain overvalued in Britain, locking out many aspiring buyers. Of that there is no doubt. But it is also the case that average prices have fallen far more than is usually understood; the single biggest reason why so many younger people cannot enter the market is because they have to put down much [...]
CITY VIEWS: DO YOU THINK HOME OWNERSHIP IS DECLINING? August 30, 2011 MARCUS KUM | INSTITUTE OF CHARTERED SHIPBROKERS “People will always buy houses rather than rent because it’s a personal achievement: the only problem is the affordability. Renting is cheaper because of the deposit when buying, causing a decline in house ownership.” CHRIS COPPING | UNITED INSURANCE BROKERS “Yes, but I’m not sure how long it [...]
£10bn profits top forecasts for Gazprom August 30, 2011 RUSSIAN gas export monopoly Gazprom’s quarterly profits beat analysts’ expectations yesterday as European buyers rushed to secure contracts at prices 21 per cent higher than a year ago. The company posted a 42 per cent increase in first-quarter earnings to 478.5bn roubles (£10.2bn), exceeding market expectations of a 29 per cent gain. The country’s largest [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING August 29, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES WATCHDOG HITS OUT AT BANKS OVER GREEK DEBT Some European financial institutions should have taken bigger losses on their Greek government bond holdings in recent results announcements, according to the body that sets their accounting rules. the International Accounting Standards Board criticised the inconsistent way in which banks and insurers have been writing [...]
Ferrari sales cause HR Owen profits jump August 22, 2011 Luxury car seller HR Owen has said its pre-tax profits doubled to £1.7m in the first half of the year as buyers flocked to its new high-end cars. The Ferrari and Bentley seller said its revenues rose almost 18 per cent compared with the first half of 2010 to £93.1m as its customers appeared undented [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING August 22, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES LLOYDS LOOKS TO EASE DISPOSAL Lloyds Banking Group is in early talks with the City regulator about easing the capital burden for prospective buyers of some of its branches in an effort to remove one of the biggest obstacles to the sale. It hopes to pave the way for a bidder to qualify [...]
Rents in capital still soaring August 18, 2011 LONDON rent rises are outstripping those in the regions as frustrated would-be homebuyers turn to short-term sources of accommodation. Rents in England and Wales rose for the sixth month in a row in July with the capital seeing the largest gains, according to the Buy-to-Let Index from LSL Property Services, which is published today. Average [...]
The new front in the mobile phone wars August 15, 2011 THE future for companies like Nokia and Motorola, once the great pioneers of the mobile phone industry, has been bleak for some time. The likes of Apple and RIM have eaten away at their share of the high-end smartphone market for several years now, while cheaper Asian manufacturers will soon do the same in the [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING August 11, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES LI & FUNG UPBEAT OVER THE GLOBAL ECONOMY Li & Fung, the Hong Kong-headquartered sourcing company for retailers such as Walmart and Debenhams, sounded an upbeat note on Thursday, asserting that business conditions were “not at all” like those in 2008”, despite the current uncertainty over prospects for the global economy. Bruce Rockowitz, [...]