Abolish bank deposit protection to make the banking system safer January 21, 2016 Deposit insurance has been the most sacrosanct component of the regulatory regime for banks since it was widely introduced during the 1970s following the collapse of the Bretton Woods regime. However, while it seeks to protect consumers against the undercapitalisation of banks and their tendency to collapse in times of stress, it has also encouraged [...]
Canadian dollar jumps as Bank of Canada holds fire on interest rates despite further fall in oil prices January 20, 2016 The Bank of Canada kept interest rates on hold today despite widespread expectations of a cut. The Canadian dollar, also called the loonie, rose 0.7 per cent against the US dollar. It now buys $0.6891. Interest rates were kept at 0.5 per cent, with the Canadian central bank confident that the economy would quickly adjust [...]
FTSE 100 index closes in a bear market as the price of oil falls further January 20, 2016 The FTSE 100 index officially fell into a bear market on Wednesday as the price of oil continued to slide. The UK's blue-chip index fell 3.46 per cent to 5,673 points, falling over 20 per cent from the high it reached in April 2015. "Few stocks were spared today as European equity markets plunged sharply today with the FTSE 100 [...]
UK unemployment drops to its lowest rate for over a decade, but earnings growth hits nine-month low January 20, 2016 Pay growth has fallen to a nine-month low, according to figures published this morning. Average weekly earnings not including bonuses rose 1.9 per cent in the three months to November compared with the same period last year, the Office for National Statistics said. It marks a slowdown from two per cent in the three months to October. [...]
Pound plummets to lowest value against the US dollar since 2009 January 19, 2016 The pound has fallen to its lowest value against the US dollar since 2009. Sterling rose in the morning to a value $1.43257 before Bank of England chief Mark Carney said now was not the time to raise interest rates. Carney also signalled he was some way off from voting for a rate hike. The pound [...]
Sterling’s gains wiped as Bank of England governor Mark Carney says now is not the time for an interest rate hike January 19, 2016 The pound lost over half a cent against the dollar today, erasing earlier gains, as Bank of England governor Mark Carney said now is not the time to raise rates. Last summer Carney said the decision on whether to raise interest rates from record lows "would likely come into sharper relief around the turn of the year." "Well [...]
Inflation nudges up to 0.2 per cent as air fares rise – but cheap food and alcohol push CPI down January 19, 2016 Inflation rose 0.2 per cent in December – the first month in almost a year – although still far from the UK's target of two per cent. This is the first month since January 2015 that the rate has been higher than 0.1 per cent. The Consumer Price Index was nudged up by transport costs, particularly [...]
Bank of Enland’s Gertjan Vlieghe: Pay and inflation are not high enough to justify interest rate hike January 18, 2016 The Bank of England’s newest rate-setter Gertjan Vlieghe has said today he is unlikely to vote for an interest rate rise unless pay growth and inflation pick up and growth remains robust. “In order to be confident enough of the medium-term inflation outlook to raise Bank Rate, I would like to see evidence that growth [...]
Accounting watchdog meeting to decide on KPMG investigation into the auditor’s role over HBOS collapse January 18, 2016 The accountancy watchdog could decide as soon as tomorrow whether to launch a formal investigation into the role of big four accountancy giant KPMG in the collapse of HBOS in 2008. The Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC) conduct committee is set to meet tomorrow to make its decision, Sky News has reported. The conduct committee will [...]
City Moves for 18 January 2016 | Who’s switching jobs January 18, 2016 Ardian Olivier Piani (pictured) has joined the real estate arm of independent private investment company Ardian as senior adviser and chairman of its investment committee. He joins from Allianz Real Estate where he was chief executive since 2008. Olivier has also been chief exec at GE Capital Real Estate Europe, chief exec of UIC-Sofal and [...]