China’s bold reform plan won’t halt growth slide November 18, 2013 Reform of state-owned enterprises may boost productivity but politicised decisions will continue Euphoria over the reform agenda released by China’s Communist Party on Friday helped push global shares to a six-year high yesterday. Chinese stocks listed offshore rose by 6 per cent, their best trading day in two years, while domestic shares increased by 2.9 [...]
Germany’s Dax hits new record high as Chinese reforms lift global markets November 18, 2013 Germany's Dax just hit a fresh high of 9228.16, hours after world markets reached their highest levels since Janaury 2008. The positive sentiment in markets comes after the Chinese government announced its Third Plenum reforms. Ishaq Siddiqi, market strategist at ETX Capital says that traders have "welcomed reform plans", and are "enthused that the country’s [...]
The Long View: UK leadership of the international space race isn’t entirely out-of-this-world November 14, 2013 WHO SAYS the sky has to be the limit? Britain’s space industry has ambitions to become a global leader. The sector’s new growth plan, announced this week, includes establishing a British spaceport within five years. It wants our 6.5 per cent share of the global space market in 2010 to be 8 per cent by [...]
Bitcoin reaches all-time high of $402 November 13, 2013 Virtual currency Bitcoin has climbed to an all-time high of $402 (£252) on the Mt. Gox exchange. Much of the recent surge has been attributed to Chinese demand where BTC China, the leading Chinese Bitcoin exchange, surpassed Japan-based Mt. Gox. On Tuesday Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (pictured), who famously sued Mark Zuckerberg over the origins [...]
General Motors moves Asian headquarters to Singapore November 13, 2013 General Motors (GM) has announced it it will be moving its international headquarters from Shanghai to Singapore in 2014. The move comes in the wake of of the company's decision to separate its Chinese operations from its international business. Singapore proved an attractive prospect, owing to its proximity to markets outside China. The city-state boasts [...]
Chinese bank issues the UK’s first-ever renminbi bonds in London November 12, 2013 CHINA’S first offshore debt sale in the UK went ahead yesterday, with the government-owned Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) issuing bonds to the value of 2bn renminbi (£206.3m). The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Standard Chartered and JP Morgan managed the sale of the bank’s debt securities. An RBS spokesperson told City A.M. [...]
Cameron will delay the Autumn Statement to lead visit to China November 12, 2013 PRIME Minister David Cameron has announced a major trade visit to China, pushing back the timing of the chancellor’s Autumn Statement. Speaking at the annual Lord Mayor’s banquet last night, Cameron said that he would be leading an official visit to China, accompanied by UK business chiefs early next month. Though he did not confirm [...]
London Report: BT and Shire lift FTSE as markets remain bullish November 11, 2013 BRITAIN’S FTSE 100 rose yesterday, boosted by signs of a strengthening global economy and major deals for pharma group Shire and telecoms group BT. Shire rose to an all-time high after beating competitors to buy ViroPharma, in a $4.2bn deal implying a 64 per cent premium to the stock price of the US rare diseases [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 08 November 2013 November 7, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Currencies probe shifts to the US A global probe into alleged manipulation of the multibillion-dollar currencies market has widened its focus to include the US, with Barclays putting three New York-based traders on leave. They included foreign exchange spot traders Russell Katz and Jerry Urwin, two of these people said. Mr Katz and [...]
JQW planning £140m London public offering November 4, 2013 CHINESE e-commerce operator JQW has announced its intention to raise up to £15m in a flotation on London’s Alternative Investment Market (Aim) next month. JQW provides small and medium-sized Chinese business an online platform to advertise their products to other businesses. The company is hoping to use the funds raised to expand its business to [...]