Sweden next for Murray’s girls February 14, 2012 TENNIS: Great Britain’s Fed Cup squad will travel to Sweden for April’s World Group II play-off tie following yesterday’s draw. Captain Judy Murray led the team of Elena Baltacha, Anne Keothavong, Heather Watson and Laura Robson through Euro/Africa Zone Group I two weeks ago. “Sweden’s top two players are similar in ranking to our top [...]
CABLE RALLIES DESPITE JUMP IN QE NUMBER February 14, 2012 THE Bank of England (BoE) voted on 9 February to maintain its reserve rate at 0.5 per cent and to increase the size of its asset purchase program by £50bn to a total of £325bn. This increase reflects concern that slower 2011 growth and a 0.2 per cent fourth quarter contraction of GDP raises the [...]
Japan’s economy falls sharply as Thai floods and strong yen pull on exports February 13, 2012 JAPAN’S economy shrank much more sharply that expected in the final quarter of 2011, official GDP estimates showed yesterday. The strong yen and Thai floods helped cut exports by 3.1 per cent over the three-month period, leading GDP to contract by 0.6 per cent. Public fixed capital formation fell by 2.5 per cent, a second [...]
THE HUNT FOR YIELD HAS LED INVESTORS TO APPLE February 13, 2012 FX 360 ONE of the absolute truths of the current investment climate is that investors are desperate for yield. With both the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank emulating the Bank of Japan by keeping rates at near zero per cent for the foreseeable future, savers have become starved for return. For example, in [...]
Everyone must learn to pay their way February 12, 2012 BRITAIN as a whole is spending much more than it raises in tax – that is why there is a massive budget deficit and the government is being forced to borrow so much. But what if the various parts of the UK were all independent countries, including the English regions? Looked at in this way, [...]
Search for Greek resolution a game of bluff February 12, 2012 WE could be entering the first really choppy period of the New Year for investors as we watch for some kind of resolution with Greece. Nearly everyone I speak to assumes that Greece will get the minimum amount it needs to stave off a disorderly default, simply because Europe is not yet confident enough to [...]
Pub and restaurant visits increase but Britons continue to rein in spending February 12, 2012 BRITONS are starting to make more frequent trips to bars, restaurants and clubs after two years of belt-tightening, in a sign that the leisure sector may be able to capitalise on “austerity fatigue”. Pub and bar visits have increased by 2.2 per cent compared to last year, with the average UK consumer going to the [...]
WALL STREET WEEK AHEAD February 12, 2012 DESPITE a mediocre earnings season and signs of an overbought market, Wall Street bulls are likely to remain in control this week. So far in this earnings season, 352 companies in the S&P 500 have reported results, of which only 63 percent have beaten Wall Street estimates. This compares to a beat rate of about [...]
No quick fix to US jobs crisis February 7, 2012 UNEMPLOYMENT in the US remains elevated and is some way from a significant improvement, the head of the Federal Reserve said yesterday. Despite positive recent jobs data, Ben Bernanke warned: “Given the anticipated modest pace of economic recovery, the committee expects that over coming quarters the unemployment rate will decline only gradually”. The official unemployment [...]
Carry on carry trading the Aussie dollar as rates held February 7, 2012 THE Reserve Bank of Australia caught the markets by surprise after holding interest rates yesterday – contrary to the expected cut. With December retail figures contracting, house prices dropping an average of 4.8 per cent year-on-year and housing construction in a 20 month slump, traders were poised for a 0.25 per cent cut in rate [...]