WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING March 14, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES FINANCIAL AUTHORITY URGED TO DROP OPAQUE CHARGES The new Financial Conduct Authority should use its powers to remove opaque banking charges and make it cheaper for new lenders to enter the market, a panel that represents the interests of retail customers has urged. In a paper to be published today, the Financial Services [...]
FTSE slides as miners hit by China’s cut in growth targets March 5, 2012 BRITAIN’S FTSE 100 fell yesterday, as weakness in miners and engineers outstripped strength in defensive stocks after China cut its growth forecasts, while mixed economic data in Europe and the United States dimmed the outlook for global growth. London’s blue chip index shed 36.31 points or 0.6 per cent to 5,874.82, although it held within [...]
Bernanke helps to push FTSE to two week low February 29, 2012 BRITAIN’S top shares ended lower yestesrday, in spite of getting intial support from the European Central Bank making cheap loans available to lenders, after bearish comments from US Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke hurt sentiment. The UK benchmark suffered a late sell-off, closing down 56.40 points, or one per cent, at 5,871.51, its lowest close [...]
FTSE flat as ECB pours in more funds February 29, 2012 The FTSE 100 was flat this morning with investors awaiting another injection of cash from the European Central Bank, aimed at propping up the Eurozone. The ECB is expected to pump about 500bn euros (£422bn) into the Eurozone’s financial system to fight the region’s debt crisis, enabling banks to tap as many of the ultra-cheap, [...]
CAR TALK February 28, 2012 RANGE ROVER GOES TOPLESS A Range Rover convertible. Well, why not? Here’s the forthcoming Evoque Convertible concept that will be unveiled at the Geneva motor show. Officially Land Rover is just exploring whether such a car would prove popular amongst car buyers, but I’d be astonished if it doesn’t build what would be the world’s [...]
BHP stops manganese operation February 22, 2012 BHP Billiton, the world’s biggest mining firm, announced this morning that it will suspend production at its manganese alloy production facility in Tasmania by early to mid-March, citing stiff international competition and rising operating costs. “Recently, there has been further erosion of its international competitiveness due to the strong Australian dollar and steady increases in [...]
Rudd quits Australian government in PM bid February 22, 2012 AUSTRALIA’S top job could be about to change hands, after foreign minister and one-time leader Kevin Rudd quit his government post yesterday, saying he could no longer work with current Prime Minister Julia Gillard. Gillard last night said her Labor Party will hold a vote on Monday to decide its leadership – though Rudd has [...]
European corporate debt issues up as banks struggle to provide funds February 21, 2012 EUROPEAN bond activity is showing signs of recovery, with corporate debt issues so far in 2012 worth $75bn (£47bn), an increase of 83 per cent on the same period last year, according to data from Thomson Reuters. The data suggests that companies that struggle to borrow from banks are instead turning to capital markets for [...]
Panamera GTS and BMW’s new-gen 3-series both score February 21, 2012 Porsche’s new Panamera shows that two more seats can still be sporty PORSCHE’s four-seat Panamera has sold surprisingly well. Though it’s pretty agile for such a large, heavy motor it’s never felt as sporty as it could have with a character that’s more luxury limousine than dynamic sportscar, even in its range-topping Turbo iteration. It’s [...]
Rio Tinto aims for driverless trains growth February 20, 2012 MINER Rio Tinto yesterday unveiled a $518m (£327m) plan to pioneer the use of driverless trains in Australia in a bid to ramp up its production. The company, which already has driverless trucks, plans to run fully automated trains across its 1,500 km (930 mile) iron-ore rail network in north west Australia from 2014, to [...]