Against the Grain: Why the psychology of crisis may explain Russia’s future growth trajectory October 1, 2013 THE PERFORMANCE of the Bric economies over the past decade or so has been mixed. Russian growth, though impressive by Western standards, has lagged behind that of both India and China – which have themselves experienced a recent relative slowdown. Russia’s underperformance, however, has been particularly noticeable since 2008. I got an insight into the [...]
Fitch says gold price rebound unlikely while fall to $1,000/oz may hit miner ratings October 1, 2013 Gold prices are unlikely to rebound according to ratings agency Fitch (release). That comes after a large sell off in precious metals today. The anticipated unwinding of US quantitative easing and expectations of improving but unspectacular economic growth leave little room for a rebound in gold prices over the next few years, while a further [...]
Russia’s Rosneft offers $1.5bn for minority stakes in TNK-BP September 30, 2013 RUSSIAN oil giant Rosneft yesterday said it plans to buy the remaining shares in TNK-BP Holding for a fraction of the price it paid BP and a group of oligarchs for their stakes, in a worrying development for minority shareholders in Russian companies. Rosneft bought the holding company and its parent TNK-BP last year in [...]
Letters to the Editor – 01/10 – Climate change, Fracking in Britain, Best of Twitter September 30, 2013 Climate change [Re: Global warming alarmism is no longer scientifically or politically sustainable, yesterday] Excellent article. We should repeal the Climate Change Act, get rid of the EU’s renewable energy targets and subsidies, and introduce sensible energy policies, run by a sensible energy minister and Department for Energy. Phillip Bratby There’s nothing wrong with renewables. [...]
The US is busy reinventing its future – the rest of the world isn’t so lucky September 29, 2013 I'VE always been a John Steinbeck/ Bruce Springsteen sort of American. I share their common mantra, "Aren't things terrible here, but I wouldn't want to be anyplace else." Being clear-eyed about the US's failings, while remaining romantic about it at heart isn't easy. But America's extraordinary capacity to right its ship – to reinvent itself [...]
City Moves for 27 September 2013 | Who’s switching jobs September 26, 2013 Cushman & Wakefield The real estate services firm has announced the appointment of Carl Foreman as a partner, and head of UK property and asset management. He joins from Jones Lang LaSalle, where he was a national director. BlackRock Mark Wharrier has joined the investment management company’s UK equity team as a director and portfolio manager. He will [...]
Riverstone aims to raise £1.5bn in energy float September 24, 2013 PRIVATE equity firm Riverstone Holdings yesterday said it is planning to float a new energy investment vehicle, Riverstone Energy, on the London Stock Exchange, in an initial public offering to raise up to £1.5bn. Lord Browne, former boss of oil major BP, is a partner at Riverstone Holdings and will take a board seat at [...]
Analysts see Societe Generale returning to strength September 23, 2013 The outlook for troubled French bank Societe Generale has improved significantly, according to analysts at Nomura with the bank outperforming the sector by 50 per cent. The bank has more than doubled from the doldrums of 2012. Confidence in the earnings outlook has improved and the sector's equity risk premium has declined according to Nomura's [...]
Adidas warns on profit as sales continue to weaken September 19, 2013 GERMAN sports wear maker Adidas warned on 2013 profit yesterday saying adverse currency effects, a distribution problem in Russia and poor trading at its golf business meant targets were no longer attainable. For 2013, Adidas now expects sales to rise by a low single digit percentage, against previous expectations for a low-mid single digit gain. [...]
Bottom Line: A global web player that is best of British September 19, 2013 ANYONE who said there was no space in the internet retail revolution for British business may have to start eating their words. On the heels of Ocado’s return to form thanks to a licensing deal with Morrisons comes this startling set of numbers from Asos. They confirm the online fashion retailer’s extraordinary achievement. In little [...]