US stocks close lower amid Greek debt crisis July 6, 2015 United States stocks closed lower today, however they clawed back some of the sharp losses seen at the open, after European and Asian markets which shook off the fallout from the Greek debt crisis earlier in the day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the day down 46.53 points, or 0.26 per cent, to just [...]
Think 45p taxpayers have it hard? The tax system crushes incentives at all levels June 29, 2015 Ahead of next week’s Budget, two former chancellors and 160 Tory MPs are calling for the 45 per cent income tax rate to be reduced to 40 per cent. But for all the political capital devoted to explaining the disincentive effects of a 45 per cent rate, the reality is that many people across the [...]
S&P downgrades Greece and puts chances of Grexit at 50 per cent June 29, 2015 S&P has downgraded Greece's credit rating from CCC to CCC-, and says there is a 50 per cent chance it will leave the Euro. Read more: Greece will default on its €1.6bn repayment to the IMF tomorrow It made the change because it feels that, unless circumstances change, Athens will probably default on its [...]
Healthcare stocks rise after Supreme Court Obamacare decision June 25, 2015 Healthcare stocks in the US were up after Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act (ACA) won an important victory today. Up for debate was whether subsidies would be available to people in all 50 states, or just those which set up insurance marketplaces under the act. The court ruled the subsidies should be available universally. [...]
City Moves for 25 June 2015 | Who’s switching jobs June 24, 2015 Nexus CIFS The trade credit insurer has announced the appointment of two commercial underwriters. Gavin Brown joins from Euler Hermes UK, where he has been working since 2006, most recently as an account manager. Philip Oldfield (pictured) has held roles at Aon and Amlin Credit. Artemis Ed Legget is joining the investment management firm to [...]
City Moves for 24 June 2015 | Who’s switching jobs June 23, 2015 PwC Alex Petsopoulos has been appointed partner in the professional services firm’s cyber security practice. He joins from Deloitte, where he was a partner in its security practice. Petsopoulos has over 14 years’ experience in the IT industry. State Street Global Advisors State Street’s asset management business has appointed Greg Ehret as president. He has [...]
Standard & Poor’s: Brexit could “significantly dent” UK financial services and insurance sectors June 23, 2015 Any departure from the European Union could do significant harm to the UK's insurance and financial services sectors, ratings agency Standard & Poor's has suggested. Read more: Eurosceptic report sets the stage for Brexit In a report published today, the organisation pointed out that between them, the two sectors account for 30 per cent of [...]
City Moves for 23 June 2015 | Who’s switching jobs June 22, 2015 BLP Insurance The insurer has appointed Craig Parfitt as chief operating officer. He joins from Deutsche Bank, where he was managing director specialising in financial management, operational excellence, transformational change and project management. JP Morgan Asset Management Thushka Maharaj has been appointed global strategist and executive director in the asset management firm’s global strategy team. [...]
Film review: Accidental Love June 18, 2015 Cert 15 | ★☆☆☆☆ Accidental Love was supposed to be David O Russell’s follow-up to 2004’s I Heart Huckabees, but he bailed on the project in 2010, perhaps after finally getting around to reading his own script. The story is daft: when Alice (an insignificant Jessica Biel) gets shot in the head by an errant [...]
Health sector set for change – New York Report June 14, 2015 HEALTHCARE sector investors seem bullish ahead of a crucial Supreme Court ruling on the Affordable Care Act. The court meets today but may not issue a ruling on King v Burwell, a challenge to President Obama’s signature healthcare reform legislation, until later this month. At issue are the tax credits that help about 6.4m Americans [...]