WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING June 29, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES BT’S PENSION SCHEME TO HOLD LESS IN EQUITIESThe BT Group Pension Scheme had only enough money at the end of 2008 to pay about 57 per cent of promised benefits if the telecommunications company were to become insolvent, and said it intended to pare back sharply its future investments in equities in the [...]
YES, RECOVERY WILL BE LONG AND HARD June 28, 2009 JANE FOLEYRESEARCH DIRECTOR, FOREX.COM HAVING rallied between March and early June on the expectation that the global economic downturn could be in the process of bottoming, the market is displaying a reluctance to extend risk. The reason is clear – economic data may have improved, but they are not yet sufficiently strong to confirm that [...]
NEW YORK REPORT June 25, 2009 US stocks rallied yesterday as investors were relieved that Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke withstood congressional questioning without problems. Retailers and home builders led stocks higher for much of the session, helped by a suprising profit increase from retailer Bed Bath & Beyond. Stocks extended gains shortly before midday as investors took Bernanke’s hearing in [...]
AIG to float two units to pay back Fed June 25, 2009 AMERICAN International Group (AIG) is to float two of its international life insurance divisions to fund the repayment of $25bn (£15.3bn) in loans it took from the Federal Reserve. The insurance giant, which has received $173.3bn in government bailouts since the onset of the financial crisis, said it would launch initial public offerings for both [...]
Bernanke defiant over BoA deal June 25, 2009 Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke last night denied that he had strongarmed Bank of America (BoA) into buying Merrill Lynch in a $50bn (£30.5bn) deal, in testimony before a congressional committee. BoA chief executive Kenneth Lewis has claimed that he was pressured into the deal by former Treasury secretary Hank Paulson, at Bernanke’s request. The [...]
Frugal food hits the top table June 24, 2009 A RESTAURATEUR who grew up in the South of France once told me that the reason that French cuisine is superior to English simply because the produce is better. In the Mediterranean world, he led me to believe, tomatoes as big as your hand grow effortlessly, exotic fish jump straight out of the sea and [...]
Luxury London house prices recover to rise 4.3 per cent in the second quarter June 24, 2009 LUXURY London house prices have recorded their first quarterly growth since beginning to slide from the peak of September 2007, according to the latest quarterly research from property group Savills. The report found prime central London house prices rose 4.3 per cent during the past three months – effectively wiping out the falls seen in [...]
NEW YORK REPORT June 24, 2009 THE Dow fell for the fourth day and other indexes ended well off the day’s highs yesterday after the Federal Reserve reiterated concerns about the economic outlook at the end of its policy meeting. Technology shares sustained some strength, bolstered by stronger-than-expected quarterly results from software maker Oracle. The Fed, as expected, left the benchmark [...]
Britain’s economy is improving slowly June 24, 2009 MOST commentators are focusing on the world’s appalling economic performance this year – the UK will collapse by 4.3 per cent, the US by 2.8 per cent, Japan by 6.8 per cent and the Eurozone by 4.8 per cent, according to yesterday’s revised forecasts from the OECD. But that is no longer really news. The [...]
Fed sounds cautious note June 24, 2009 THE US Federal Reserve said last night that the recession was easing as it kept interest rates on hold, but warned that economic activity would “remain weak for a time”. It also vowed to press on with its strategy of buying up mortgage-related debt and government bonds. America’s central bank, chaired by Ben Bernanke, kept [...]