Merkozy’s business-killing tax plans August 17, 2011 TUESDAY’S announcement by Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy that they intend to implement a financial transactions tax in the EU was bad news all round. But such a tax would be particularly damaging to those within the forex market. Forex is the largest financial market in the world, with a £2.5 trillion average daily turnover. [...]
Banks blast “Tobin tax” proposal August 17, 2011 Banks blasted Franco-German plans to push again for a Europe-wide tax on financial transactions, saying the tax would be destabilising, ineffective and costly to industry. Financial markets players have said that even if France and Germany could persuade all 27 European Union member states to adopt the tax – overcoming long-standing UK opposition – it [...]
City Sup€rtax August 16, 2011 PLANS FOR EUROPE-WIDE LEVY WOULD HIT SQUARE MILE GERMAN chancellor Angela Merkel rocked investors last night with a shock commitment to push for a EU-wide financial transactions tax, often known as a Tobin tax. The plans for a Europe-wide levy would knock the Square Mile, threatening to push even more jobs to lower-tax corners of [...]
Merkozy’s first outing fails to impress August 16, 2011 IT was almost a case of goodbye Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy; welcome Merkozy, the new Franco-German super-politician. Yesterday’s summit was classic Euro-fudge: radical and possibly disastrous proposals camouflaged by the fact that some other, equally disastrous proposals, were rejected. At any other time, the news that France and Germany could harmonise their corporation tax [...]
Upbeat US outlook lifts FTSE but Eurozone worries linger August 16, 2011 BRITAIN’S top shares ended a shade higher yesterday, notably banks, after a better than forecast report on industrial output in the United States and as Fitch confirmed that nation’s top credit rating with a stable outlook. The UK benchmark index ended up 7.05 points, or 0.1 per cent, at 5,357.63, having spent much of the [...]
Sarkozy and Merkel announce plans for closer EU integration August 16, 2011 THE story of the crumbling Eurozone took a new twist yesterday with a joint press conference given by German chancellor Angela Merkel and French president Nicolas Sarkozy. This followed an afternoon of meetings between the two premiers, as they discussed ways to shore up the euro. The plight affecting the euro has largely been centered [...]
Merkel and Sarkozy move closer to eurozone government August 16, 2011 France and Germany’s leaders have agreed to push for closer joint governance of economic policy and float proposals in September for a tax on financial transactions, French president Nicolas Sarkozy has said. After talks in Paris, Sarkozy said he and German chancellor Angela Merkel were also proposing that all 17 eurozone countries commit to balanced [...]
German GDP blow drags down markets August 16, 2011 European markets were this morning dragged down by figures showing spluttering German GDP growth. The slowdown in the Eurozone’s strongest economy cast a shadow over today’s summit between France’s Nicolas Sarkozy and Germany’s Angela Merkel aimed at hammering out solutions to the bloc’s debt crisis. The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down [...]
European Central Bank sucks up €22bn in debt August 15, 2011 THE European Central Bank (ECB) exceeded expectations by purchasing €22bn (£19.4bn) worth of debt from troubled Eurozone governments last week. The ECB announced the figure yesterday, which surpasses even the €16.5bn in bonds that it purchased in May 2010, when it intervened in a bid to save the Greek government. The ECB reluctantly entered the [...]
Merkel jets to Paris for talks August 15, 2011 PARIS will host German chancellor Angela Merkel today, as she joins French president Nicolas Sarkozy in a bid to control the Eurozone’s growing debt crisis. The controversial euro bonds plan – which would see debt pooled across the 17 members of the single currency – is believed to be off the agenda, with increasing opposition [...]