Sterling falls further September 4, 2008 Sterling continued its sharp decline yesterday as currency markets reacted to the worsening outlook for the UK economy and a slew of negative economic data. Surveys showed consumer confidence mired at a four-month low in August as food prices rose ten per cent year-on-year. Other data showed activity in the services sector still weakening. The [...]
Brown’s £1bn home market rescue gets a cool response September 3, 2008 Critics have rounded on prime minister Gordon Brown’s housing market rescue package saying it will do little to reverse the worst housing slump in 18 years. From today the government has scrapped stamp duty for a year on homes worth less than £175,000 as part of a package of measures designed to revitalise the flagging [...]
Recession for UK this year warns OECD September 3, 2008 Britain is nearer recession than both the US and Europe, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) warned yesterday as it slashed its UK growth forecast. The grim warning from the Paris based agency is the first time one of the world’s main public forecasters, has predicted a UK recession. The OECD forecast third [...]
InBev plans £1bn deal September 3, 2008 Belgian brewer InBev is planning to put its South Korean beer business up for sale, sources said yesterday. The move is an effort to shed a noncore asset and raise what could be roughly £1bn for its purchase of US brewer Anheuser-Busch. Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan Chase will run the auction for the business, called [...]
Hopes mount for inflation as oil slumps September 3, 2008 $100 a barrel in sight as global demand drops and hurricane misses refineries Oil prices could once again move back below the symbolic $100 a barrel level, analysts said yesterday. The forecasts, which were welcomed by consumers and economists, came after crude plummeted to a five-month low, boosting hopes that spiralling inflation would finally be [...]
Data fans slump fears September 2, 2008 Weak data with British mortgage approvals at their lowest level in 15 years and the manufacturing sector shrinking for its fourth straight month in August yesterday heightened fears that a UK recession was now inevitable. The Bank of England said that mortgage approvals, seen as an indicator of future movements in house prices, fell to [...]
Sterling hits a record low against euro September 2, 2008 Pressure mounts as the Treasury prepares to slash the UK’s economic growth forecasts Gloomy comments by Alistair Darling, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, were yesterday blamed for pushing the pound to an all-time low against the euro. Sterling reached a 12-year low against the currencies of its major trading partners after Darling said the economy [...]
Dresdner Kleinwort set for job cuts after Commerzbank seals the deal September 2, 2008 Dresdner Kleinwort employees were bracing themselves for a round of sweeping job cuts yesterday, after German bank Commerzbank completed a deal to buy Dresdner Bank from insurers Allianz at the weekend. Dresdner Kleinwort, led by CEO Stefan Jentzsch and his team employs about 5,500 staff in the UK, with 2,000 of those based in the [...]
Don’t over-complicate your approach to the market September 1, 2008 I spent last week away from the markets and enjoying Paris. I saw many of the sights – the Eiffel Tower, the Opera – but not the secret signs from the Da Vinci Code which are scattered around Paris. That got me thinking about the markets. Lots of people think they have secret codes or [...]
The weak pound can offer opportunities September 1, 2008 Looming interest-rate decisions could give options to spread betters, writes Katie Hope If you were planning a quick shopping trip to New York to take advantage of the weakening dollar, you may have missed your moment. The pound’s strength against the dollar is finally on the turn. In the past month sterling has seen its [...]