The world will reach peak oil within years, the IEA warns, as it declares the era of fossil fuels is “far from over” November 16, 2016 The world could reach peak oil and face a supply shortage within years, causing it to enter a new phase of boom and bust prices, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has warned. Investment in crude oil development fell to its lowest level since the 1950s in 2015 and 2016 data so far shows no signs of [...]
Sterling falls back below $1.24 after a surprise fall in inflation – pushed down by tuition fees and clothes November 15, 2016 So much for the Trump rally. The pound fell back below $1.24 this afternoon after figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed prices rose 0.9 per cent in October – missing expectations. Economists had expected the weaker pound to push consumer price inflation (CPI) to a two-year high of 1.2 per cent, from September's one [...]
Net profit at Rosneft plunges more than 70 per cent as weak Brent crude oil price continues to bite November 11, 2016 Russia's largest oil producer, Rosneft, has become the latest firm to report a hit from weak oil prices in the third quarter as net profit at the group plummeted 71 per cent. The figures Net income attributable to Rosneft's shareholders in the third quarter slid to 26bn roubles (£325m), driven by lower operating profit, while earnings before [...]
Businesses are unwittingly entering the political fray with post-Brexit price rises November 10, 2016 More businesses are justifying price rises by blaming the fall in the pound post-Brexit. Whatever their commercial reasons, this is an extremely dangerous game. Commenting in these ways means entering the political arena at a sensitive time. These firms should be ready for serious scrutiny and hostile comment – now, but more importantly in the [...]
Britain’s coal-fired power stations likely to close by 2025 as government orders plants to halve carbon emissions or shut down November 9, 2016 Britain's eight remaining unabated coal power stations will be forced to close in 2025 unless they can halve their carbon emissions, the government said today. However, the process to install technology to dramatically cut emissions and become "abated" power stations is thought to be so costly that the last plants will not be able to accomplish [...]
Average energy prices rise seven per cent in two months, MoneySuperMarket analysis finds November 8, 2016 The average cost of the cheapest energy tariffs available in the UK has jumped by seven per cent in the last two months, according to MoneySuperMarket. The average cost of the top 10 deals rose on 7 September was £784, but had risen to £839 by 7 November, an analysis of MoneySuperMarket data representative of the whole [...]
Trump versus Hillary: How to make money whoever wins the US presidency November 8, 2016 This presidential campaign has been nothing if not unpredictable. Less than a fortnight ago, a victory for Hillary Clinton looked all but certain. Then it emerged that the FBI was investigating a new set of emails connected with her private server. Now, she has been cleared, but Donald Trump is arguing that her latest exoneration [...]
As inflation rises, central banks have their eyes on economic growth, not prices: Here’s what’s causing the bond sell-off November 1, 2016 Inflation is back, it would seem. After years of deflation and disinflation, recent data shows that price levels have been rising in the US, the UK and in the Eurozone. After a peak in bond prices in July, holders of debt are now concerned that the yield on long-dated securities could be eroded over the coming [...]
Audi and VW have set aside another €1bn between them to pay for the diesel emissions scandal October 27, 2016 Audi and Volkswagen have set aside another €1bn (£893m) between them to address the diesel emissions scandal which which has beset the pair since September last year. Ahead of results from the Volkswagen Group today, Audi, which is owned by VW, said it expected additional financial burdens of €620m in the third quarter. That's partly [...]
Leading the charge: How to invest in the nascent, but lucrative, electric power storage sector October 27, 2016 One word captures the holy grail for the energy industry: storage. A Carbon Trust report from March found that better energy storage could save £2.4bn a year by 2030 in the UK. If certain regulatory hurdles are overcome, this could rise to £7bn a year. New developments and innovations are coming to market all the [...]