New jobless claims rose in US last week October 14, 2010 New US claims for jobless benefits rose last week, hardening the view the central bank will pump more money into the economy, and keeping pressure on Democrats poised to lose congressional seats in 2 November polls. At the same time, record-high imports from China helped push the US trade deficit wider in August, while rising [...]
CPI inflation holds steady in September October 12, 2010 CONSUMER Price Index (CPI) inflation remained at 3.1 per cent in September, unchanged from August official figures released yesterday showed, continuing the trend of above target inflation. Meanwhile, Retail Price Index (RPI) inflation was 4.6 per cent, down from 4.7 per cent in August but above analysts expectations of 4.4 per cent. The Office for [...]
Poor consumer confidence hits the High Street October 11, 2010 A LACK of confidence among consumers has resulted in lacklustre retail sales growth over the past six months while next week’s Comprehensive Spending Review is unlikely to boost optimism among spenders. Retail sales values rose just 0.5 per cent last month on a like-for-like basis from September 2009, when sales had risen 2.8 per cent. [...]
FTSE rises on stimulus expectation October 6, 2010 BRITAIN’S top share index closed higher, at a fresh five month peak yesterday led by miners and energy issues as commodities rose on optimism governments will act to stimulate economies around the world. At the close, the FTSE 100 was up 45.63 points, or 0.8 per cent at 5,681.39, its highest close since 26 April. [...]
Shop price inflation hits a five-month high after food and cotton prices surge October 6, 2010 A jump in the cost of agricultural commodities drove British shop price inflation to a five-month high in September, but weak consumer demand should contain price pressures in the rest of 2010, a survey showed yesterday. The British Retail Consortium (BRC) said shop prices in September were 1.9 per cent higher than a year ago, [...]
Tesco talks up economy as profit lifts October 5, 2010 TESCO said yesterday that the UK was unlikely to slide back into recession as it reported a 12.5 per cent increase in first half profit to £1.6bn. The world’s third largest retailer said it had been boosted by the strength of Asian markets, offsetting “modest” UK sales growth in the 26 weeks to 8 August. [...]
Service sector growth rises – but outlook poor October 5, 2010 Services activity growth rose unexpectedly in September from a 16-month low, but the outlook is poor with the weakest inflow of new business in over a year, a survey showed. The figures are unlikely to alter expectations that the Bank of England will keep its ultra-loose policy stance unchanged later this week and probably well [...]
Tesco in £1.8bn profit October 5, 2010 Tesco has made a £1.8bn profit in first half profits – a 14 per cent jump from the same period the year before. The world’s third biggest retailer said the rise in underlying pre-tax profits came despite “modest” UK sales growth in the 26 weeks to 28 August. Sales across the group jumped by more [...]
Tensions rise among MPC over more QE October 3, 2010 SPECULATION of a three-way split among the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has intensified in recent days, creating a debate among City economists about whether the Bank will loosen policy even further. External MPC member Adam Posen last week put the cat among the already nervous pigeons when he argued strongly in favour [...]
Germany’s consumers optimistic September 28, 2010 GERMAN consumers are at their most confident in three years with further optimism expected next month thanks to the continued economic recovery, falling unemployment figures and only moderate inflationary pressures, market research firm GfK said yesterday. This month, the consumer confidence indicator jumped 6.9 points to 53.5, the highest level for around three years. Expectations [...]