Asian markets mixed ahead of Chinese data release May 30, 2014 Asian markets swung between gains and losses as investors await the release of Chinese manufacturing data. China's official manufacturing purchasing manager's index (PMI) for May will be published on Sunday. Analysts are forecasting a slight rise from April's 50.4 to 50.6. The Nikkei is down 0.3 per cent after data showed a slowdown in industrial [...]
Letters to the Editor – 23/05 – Debating Europe, Best of Twitter May 22, 2014 Debating Europe [Re: European Parliament election: Could a victory for Ukip help it secure a domestic foothold?, yesterday] It was interesting to hear Charles Lewington OBE’s views that Nigel Farage’s party is one of “eccentrics”. It might be also interesting to note that one such “eccentric” worked as a non-executive director for Charles’s business for [...]
Thomas Piketty and the great inequality debate: The Ayn Rand response May 20, 2014 After weeks of debates and reviews Thomas Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty First Century is still a subject of fierce controversy and currently ranks 17 on the Amazon bestseller list. Piketty’s argument that the rate of return on capital in capitalist economies tends to be higher than the growth rate, leading to a concentration of [...]
Thomas Piketty and the great inequality debate: The Ayn Rand response May 20, 2014 After weeks of debates and reviews Thomas Piketty's Capital in the Twenty First Century is still a subject of fierce controversy and currently ranks 17 on the Amazon bestseller list. Piketty's argument that the rate of return on capital in capitalist economies tends to be higher than the growth rate, leading to a concentration of [...]
London is booming. We must allow it to fulfil its true potential May 15, 2014 WE all know that London emerged from the crisis remarkably unscathed. But few realise just how well our great city has performed over the past 15 years, and how we have grown faster than almost all comparable metropolises since the recession. In 1997, London boasted 1.59m employee jobs in office-based sectors. Today, the number is [...]
City Matters: The EU financial transaction tax will hurt the prudent – not the reckless May 12, 2014 THE IMPORTANT debate between the City and 11 EU governments on whether or not to introduce a tax on derivatives and shares continued last week. Both sides have scored victories, but now a more conciliatory tone is emerging, and this should be welcomed. With the European Court of Justice rejecting a pre-emptive challenge to this [...]
Britain needs a monetary policy fit for a booming economy May 11, 2014 SO what, exactly, is going on? Why does the UK still have crisis-level interest rates at a time when growth is roaring ahead? When will the penny finally drop? Check out the evidence; it is pretty conclusive. The Confederation of British Industry believes that the economy will grow by three per cent this year and [...]
City Matters: The EU financial transaction tax will hurt the prudent – not the reckless May 11, 2014 THE IMPORTANT debate between the City and 11 EU governments on whether or not to introduce a tax on derivatives and shares continued last week. Both sides have scored victories, but now a more conciliatory tone is emerging, and this should be welcomed. With the European Court of Justice rejecting a pre-emptive challenge to this [...]
How executive pay regulations can increase inequality – not reduce it May 7, 2014 IN JUST two months, Thomas Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-First Century has taken the world by storm. In it, he argues that substantial increases in inequality can only be reversed through government intervention. Piketty’s own suggestion is a 2 per cent annual wealth tax, and income tax rates of up to 80 per cent. In [...]
How executive pay regulations can increase inequality – not reduce it May 7, 2014 IN JUST two months, Thomas Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-First Century has taken the world by storm. In it, he argues that substantial increases in inequality can only be reversed through government intervention. Piketty’s own suggestion is a 2 per cent annual wealth tax, and income tax rates of up to 80 per cent. In [...]