Financial service jobs rise in February 2012 February 29, 2012 MORGAN MCKINLEY FINANCIAL SERVICES AS THE top graph clearly shows, there have been many ups and downs in the City hiring market over the last five years. The fluctuations in financial services hiring are traditionally seasonal, with Christmas, bonus season and mid-summer being the less active periods of the year. However, over the last five [...]
CRH bullish as its profits beat forecast February 28, 2012 BUILDING materials group CRH said yesterday that full-year profits came in ahead of forecasts for its debut results as a FTSE 100 company. CRH said the outlook for 2012 is positive despite rising energy costs and a weaker economic picture in Europe. The Irish company is strong in the US, where it is the major [...]
Hysteria over student visas is damaging our reputation and Britain’s future growth February 28, 2012 THE UK’s higher education sector is an export success story. Only the United States recruits more international students. Those from outside the European Union contribute £2.5bn each year in fees to our universities and spend a further £2.5bn while they are here. If students in further education and private sector colleges are included, the figure [...]
UK GDP drop confirmed February 24, 2012 Britain’s economy shrank in the fourth quarter of last year despite higher consumer spending and strong export growth as businesses slashed investment, official data showed on Friday. The Office for National Statistics confirmed earlier estimates that the economy shrank by 0.2 percent quarter-on-quarter, growing by 0.7 per cent on the year – a slight downward [...]
Rudd quits Australian government in PM bid February 22, 2012 AUSTRALIA’S top job could be about to change hands, after foreign minister and one-time leader Kevin Rudd quit his government post yesterday, saying he could no longer work with current Prime Minister Julia Gillard. Gillard last night said her Labor Party will hold a vote on Monday to decide its leadership – though Rudd has [...]
Amec in £400m buyback plan February 21, 2012 AMEC yesterday announced a £400m share buyback and hiked its dividend on the strength of its 2011 profits. The engineer, which is a consultant to energy industry big hitters including Centrica and ConocoPhillips, said it had been buoyed by a string of acquisitions and was on the hunt for more. AMEC posted full-year earnings before [...]
Strong profits at BNP Paribas Real Estate February 21, 2012 BNP PARIBAS Real Estate enjoyed a strong performance in 2011 despite tougher market conditions, posting an 11 per cent rise in operating profits to €156m (£130.8m). The real estate advisory arm of France’s biggest listed bank – which posted full-year profits of £6bn last week – said turnover increased by six per cent to €658m [...]
Rathbones in profit despite Europe drama February 21, 2012 RATHBONE Brothers shrugged off concern over the Eurozone to post a 20 per cent rise in profits for last year. The genteel wealth manager, whose origins go back to 1742, said global output is continuing to grow and there are “small signs” of improvement in some developed economies. Rathbones, which has a banking licence, pulled [...]
UK public finances in bigger than expected surplus February 21, 2012 UK public finances posted their biggest monthly surplus in four years in January, driven by a drop in local government borrowing and a modest rise in tax receipts, the Office for National Statistics said on Tuesday. The figures will come as a relief for Chancellor George Osborne after ratings agency Moody’s warned last week that [...]
German President resigns over home loan scandal February 17, 2012 GERMAN President Christian Wulff resigned this morning after state prosecutors asked parliament to remove his legal immunity over accusations that he accepted favours. He has been hit by a scandal over a home loan that he accepted while leading the state of Lower Saxony. “The developments of the past few days and weeks have shown [...]