Art review: Borderlands March 20, 2015 Gallery for Russian Arts and Design | ★★★★☆ Contemporary Russian and Ukrainian artists come together to reflect on the military conflict in eastern Ukraine and what it might mean for the future of the region. Artists from Kiev and Moscow have used video, photography and sculpture – including a brick rendering of the recently redrawn border of [...]
Jimmy Choo’s sales rise as it strides into Asia March 19, 2015 LUXURY shoemaker Jimmy Choo said it more than halved its losses last year, thanks to its expanding footprint in Asia, despite shouldering £7.8m of initial public offering (IPO) costs. The company, which floated on the London stock market in October, reported a 7.2 per cent rise in earnings before tax, interest, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) [...]
Is the ECB speaking too soon in saying that QE is already helping the Eurozone economy? March 19, 2015 Danae Kyriakopoulou, an economist at the Centre for Economics and Business Research, says Yes Central bankers in Frankfurt have been patting each other on the back as the euro has continued to slide. At first glance, why shouldn’t they? Their QE has sent the euro tumbling, making Eurozone exports more competitive and raising prospects for [...]
Budget 2015: The stories that broke during George Osborne’s speech March 18, 2015 The announcement of the UK government’s annual budget is one of the biggest dates in the financial calendar. City hacks' ears were tuned into George Osborne’s speech this lunchtime, as eyes were glued to Twitter for all the breaking hot takes on the chancellor’s tie colour and fingers were madly typing away to produce a [...]
A year after Russia’s annexation of Crimea, has the West managed to contain Vladimir Putin? March 16, 2015 Timothy Ash, head of emerging market research (excluding Africa) at Standard Bank, says Yes To answer this, one has to understand Vladimir Putin’s overall long-term strategic objectives regarding Ukraine. If they are threefold – no EU, no Nato and no successful Maidan administration in Kiev – then the Russian President has unfinished business. The combination [...]
Where has Vladimir Putin been? The theories surrounding the Russian President’s disappearance March 16, 2015 Russian President Vladimir Putin finally made a public appearance this morning, after an 11-day absence. Putin turned up to a scheduled meeting with Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev in St Petersburg – and even took him "for a little drive", according to Atambayev. But the rumour-mill was working in overdrive during Putin's disappearance/ Here are the [...]
The end of an illusion: What Boris Nemtsov’s murder means for the international community March 14, 2015 On February 27, Boris Nemtsov, the Russian statesman, physicist, and outspoken critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was executed by unknown assailants just outside Moscow’s Red Square. A liberal reformer, Nemtsov was a key figure in the introduction of capitalism to post-Soviet Russia. He was also seen as a uniting figure, someone who could bring [...]
From BHS and John Lewis to TSB and the Apple Watch: What got us talking this week? March 13, 2015 Jeremy Clarkson punched a man over a steak. Blurred Lines went from being the song with questionable gender politics to being a Marvin Gaye rip-off. And somewhere above our heads, a pilot got bored and drew rude pictures using GPS flight data. Here is what got us talking at City A.M. 1. After 15 [...]
Bank of Russia cuts interest rates to 14 per cent March 13, 2015 Russia slashed its interest rate by one percentage points to 14 per cent today saying "the balance of risks is still shifted towards a more significant cooling of the economy". The bank said the rate could would help reduce these risks, without the threat of increasing inflationary pressure. This is because monetary policy, and low [...]
Mayor of Kiev fights for new city investors March 12, 2015 WITH the usual enormous Russian pavilion conspicuous by its absence at this year’s Mipim property bash, Russians have all but deserted the event this year. But their Ukrainian neighbour has arrived in force, with Kiev mayor and former world champion boxer Vitali Klitschko flying in to persuade people to invest in the country’s capital. Klitschko [...]