UK car sales hit 10-year high in 2014: High consumer confidence and boost to industry January 7, 2015 The number of new cars sold in the UK reached a 10-year high in 2014, new figures show. Over the whole of last year 2,476,435 new cars were registered, according to figures released yesterday by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). It was the fourth-best year of all time regarding the [...]
City Moves for 06 January 2015 | Who’s switching jobs January 5, 2015 Stanhope Capital The investment office has announced the appointment of Charles Mesquita as a senior director in its charity team. He has over 25 years’ investment experience, and has previously held positions at Newton Investment Management and Rensburg Sheppards (now Investec). Simmons & Simmons Matthew Pitman has been promoted to partner at the law firm. Based [...]
Burgess admits tackling rugby union is tougher than expected January 5, 2015 CODE-SWITCHER Sam Burgess has revealed the conversion to rugby union from league is proving a harder task to master than he initially envisaged. Surgery to fix a broken cheekbone delayed his union debut until November but after a smattering of cameos the 26-year-old made his first start for Bath in their 17-8 Premiership defeat to [...]
US jobs data gives snapshot of economy – The week ahead on Wall St January 4, 2015 INVESTORS will get a fresh snapshot of the state of the US economy at the start of 2015 on Friday, when figures for nonfarm payrolls, the unemployment rate and wholesale inventories are announced. The unemployment rate for December is likely to remain at 5.8 per cent, according to analysts, while weekly jobless claims for January, [...]
CES 2015 preview: 3 things to expect at the biggest technology show of the year January 4, 2015 It's not even a week since the wrapping was ripped off the latest tech gadget gifts given over Christmas, but a wave of new devices, inventions and trends are already set to sweep the market. The annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES), brings together the biggest electronics brands, and many upstarts looking to disrupt their business, [...]
Henry IV Parts 1 and 2: An RSC hit at the Barbican December 18, 2014 Barbican | ★★★★☆ The Henry IV plays occupy an odd place in Shakespeare’s canon. They have the dimensions of a soap opera, spanning the breadth of society for the entire duration of a reign. They’re tonally inconsistent, flashing from palace to pub, and sparse of incident. Tense battles conclude with the blackest of comedy, [...]
Andrew W. Mellon Foundation – No.13 December 18, 2014 USA – £149m Andrew Mellon was part of the same generation as well known figures John Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie and Henry Ford. But Princeton University professor David Cannadine says even among such notable contemporaries, Mellon was unique. “He excelled in four fields of endeavor: as a businessman and banker; as a politician and statesman; as [...]
City Moves for 15 December 2014 | Who’s switching jobs December 14, 2014 Lloyds Theresa Newell has been promoted to managing director and co-head of leveraged credit sales at Lloyds Bank Commercial Bank. Newell joined Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking last year and has over 15 years’ experience in credit products. Previously, she was with RBS and JP Morgan Chase. Canaccord Genuity Wealth Management Andrew Clotworthy has joined the [...]
Tax-cutting guru Arthur Laffer delivers stinging verdict on Thomas Piketty’s Capital in the 21st Century December 8, 2014 While the initial excitement surrounding Thomas Piketty's treatise Capital in the 21st Century may have subsided, its impact endures – and now one of the most renowned free-market economists has sought to reignite the debate. After receiving a wave of adulation, the book came under withering assault for its use of statistics, data and methodology. [...]
New car sales set to overtake pre-recession levels next year December 4, 2014 NEW CAR sales are showing no signs of hitting the brakes after increasing for the 33rd consecutive month in November. November new car sales reached 172,327, up by eight per cent on November 2013, according to figures released yesterday by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. In the year-to-date new car sales have raced ahead [...]