US finalises new Russia sanctions plan as EU hesitates September 9, 2014 The US is putting the finishing touches to a new tranche of sanctions aimed at Russia, including powers to curb the nation’s defence, energy and financial sectors, it announced yesterday. The US government is seeking both to “deepen and broaden” existing sanctions against President Vladimir Putin’s government, following continued unrest in eastern Ukraine. State department [...]
Europe can cut reliance on Russian gas, report claims September 9, 2014 The European Union can – and should – reduce its reliance on Russia as a source of gas, a new report into climate change has suggested. Think tank Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) claims that a 35 per cent cut in the EU's energy usage by 2030 – recommended by the European Commission [...]
EU puts new Russia sanctions on hold in hope ceasefire survives September 8, 2014 EUROPEAN leaders last night announced they had agreed new economic sanctions against Russia – but will not put them into force for the time being. Russia threatened to hit back, potentially by closing its airspace to EU airlines’ flights. Brussels’ aim is to punish Russia for its increasingly overt invasion of regions in the east [...]
City Moves for 09 September 2014 | Who’s switching jobs September 8, 2014 Lloyds Bank Madeleine McDougall has been appointed head of origination within Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking’s global corporate real estate business. She joins from Deutsche Pfandbriefbank, where she led its international client team in the UK. McDougall has also held roles at Eurohypo and Westimmo. EY Jason Lester has been appointed UK & Ireland managing partner [...]
Has the geopolitical crisis in Ukraine made Russia a no go zone for Western investors? September 7, 2014 Timothy Ash is head of emerging market research (excluding Africa) at Standard Bank, says Yes. As the West continues to shy away from Iran-style sanctions, which would ban secondary trading in debt and equity and thereby lock investors in positions, Russia is still technically investible. But it is a binary call on the country now [...]
Russia “will react” to EU sanctions, accuses Nato of supporting neo-Nazi forces September 6, 2014 Russia says "there will undoubtedly be a reaction" to any new sanctions imposed by the EU. The Russian foreign ministry said in a statement that the EU's proposed sanctions were "practically sending a signal of direct support to the 'party of war' in Kiev". The new sanctions will target state-owned oil companies, including Rosneft, and add [...]
Russian rouble rallies as Putin agrees Ukraine ceasefire September 5, 2014 The rouble rose 0.22 per cent against the dollar and 0.14 per cent against the Euro at pixel time after Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko announced his government had reached a ceasefire agreement with pro-Russian rebels this afternoon. Earlier in the day, investors had piled into Russian stocks on rumours of an end to fighting, with [...]
Cameron commits 1,000 British troops to Nato-wide “rapid” force September 5, 2014 David Cameron has committed 1,000 troops to a multinational “rapid” response force in the face of “new and evolving dangers”. Speaking at the second day of the Nato summit in the Welsh city of Newport, the Prime Minister warned about “an arc of instability [that] bends from North Africa to the Middle East”, while [...]
EasyJet reports record numbers during August September 4, 2014 BUDGET airline EasyJet yesterday reported it had flown a record number of passengers in August, with 6.6m travellers on its aircraft – 8.4 per cent more than the same month last year. EasyJet’s load factor — how full the company’s planes are — was at more than 94 per cent, another record for the airline [...]
French unemployment edges higher adding to Hollande’s woes September 4, 2014 The unemployment rate in France has edged higher in another blow to President Hollande’s efforts to reduce jobless rates- one of a variety of economic woes for the French leader. 10.2 per cent of the French population were out of work in the second quarter of this year, compared to 10.1 per cent in the [...]