FTSE up as UK manufacturing decline slows July 2, 2012 The FTSE 100 edged up this morning as new data showed that the decline in UK manufacturing slowed in June. The manufacturing PMI – a respected survey of the sector – stood at at 48.6, up from 45.9 in May and well ahead of the consensus forecast of 46.5. New orders also rose strongly to [...]
FTSE led down by scandal-hit Barclays June 28, 2012 The FTSE 100 slipped this morning as miners dipped and Barclays was dented by the Libor scandal while it was confirmed that the UK had lurched back into recession. Britain’s economy shrank by 0.3 pe rcent during the first three months of this year, official data confirmed, leaving the nation in its second recession in [...]
FTSE led down by scandal-hit Barclays June 28, 2012 The FTSE 100 slipped this morning as miners dipped and Barclays was dented by the Libor scandal while it was confirmed that the UK had lurched back into recession. Britain’s economy shrank by 0.3 per cent during the first three months of this year, official data confirmed, leaving the nation in its second recession in [...]
King demands full inquiry into NatWest fiasco June 26, 2012 SIR MERVYN King yesterday demanded that a formal investigation be launched into the RBS and NatWest technical glitch, adding to pressure on the bank and its chief executive Stephen Hester. “Once the difficulties are over, we will need the FSA to carry out a very detailed investigation,” King argued, with the focus on “first of [...]
Twitter effect hits brands as the impact on consumer perception becomes clear June 26, 2012 WHETHER NatWest’s recent computer problems are over remains to be seen, but what is already obvious is the damage that is being done to perception of the brand. YouGov SoMA (Social Media Analysis tool) looks at the impact that campaigns or crises have on social media. While an average day generates tweets about NatWest that [...]
Useless PR has turned NatWest’s woes into a corporate nightmare June 26, 2012 FOUR years ago, Stephen Hester was CEO of British Land. Not a company many people know of, let alone its boss. But today, not only is Hester running RBS – one of Britain’s best known banking groups and owners of NatWest – he is a household name. First it was his salary, then it was his [...]
RAPID responses June 26, 2012 UK tennis failures [Re: Tennis is booming financially – but the cash is wasted, yesterday] It’s good to read someone is tracking the failures of British tennis. My eight year old son has been playing for three years and support for young players is shockingly inadequate. Most of those parading as coaches add little to [...]
RBS computer woes could last weeks June 26, 2012 RBS could be dealing with the effects of the latest backlog of customers’ transactions for several weeks, the Financial Ombudsman Service said after it received around 500 calls from irate RBS customers. Customers’ transactions from RBS, NatWest and Ireland’s Ulster Bank have been delayed because of a software update failure last week. According to RBS, [...]
Online blunder puts Hester’s bonus under threat again June 25, 2012 As the computer meltdown at NatWest entered another week, pressure mounted yesterday to make senior management pay the price for the disruption. Liberal Democrat peer Lord Oakeshott told Sky News that there was “no question that [RBS boss] Stephen Hester should not be eligible for a bonus after this fiasco.” Interviewed yesterday, Hester said management [...]
RAPID responses June 25, 2012 A perfect IT storm [Re: Customers should vote with their feet to punish bad service, yesterday] NatWest has blamed a failed IT upgrade for upending its systems and leaving customers inconvenienced and angry. Many will complain about a failure to reward IT staff, inappropriate offshoring or a lack of concern for customer service. But what [...]