Think tank slams Bank of England stress tests for being far too weak June 17, 2015 A think tank has called for an end to regulatory stress tests on banks, saying they are “sleep- walking” the sector into another financial crisis. The Adam Smith Institute, a free market think tank, said the annual Bank of England tests – which are used to gauge the resilience of banks to volatile financials scenarios [...]
Suppliers lose out on over half of supermarket promotions June 17, 2015 Suppliers of everyday products to supermarkets are losing money on 60 per cent of promotions, and the situation has been getting worse, according to data gathered over three years by Nielsen. Around $500bn (£317bn) is spent on trade promotions globally each year, with makers of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) such as Unilever often investing 20 [...]
Asia Resource Minerals hit with £4.65m FCA fine June 17, 2015 The financial regulator has slapped a £4.65m fine on Asia Resource Minerals (Arm) for breaching the listing rules. The firm was cited by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for having “inadequate systems and controls to comply with its obligations as a listed company”. This included failing to identify transactions valued at just over £8m. Georgina [...]
House insurance prices forecast to fall further as competition thrives June 17, 2015 The UK’s household insurers could swing to an underwriting loss within two years, despite recording an industry-wide profit of around £500m last year. In a report released today, audit firm Deloitte warns that increasing competition pressures are forcing household insurance prices down. Relatively benign weather conditions over the past two years have also helped keep [...]
Grexit: Greek central bank warns of “uncontrollable crisis” if negotiations fail June 17, 2015 The Bank of Greece has warned its government of an "uncontrollable crisis" if it fails to reach an agreement with creditors by the end of the week. Greece's central bank says such a scenario would kick-off a "painful" course of events that could lead to the country's exit from the European Union, and urged the [...]
Fed fuels interest rate hike on “moderate” growth in US economy June 17, 2015 The Federal Reserve has kept interest rates unchanged at a historic low of 0 to 0.25 per cent, but offered hope of an increase in short-term interest rates with positive statements about the US economy. Read more: Why it’s not time to dump US equities – a Fed interest rate hike won’t drag down stocks The [...]
South England employment rate drives boost – while Northern Ireland and the north east lag behind June 17, 2015 South east and south east England have the highest employment rates in the UK, while Northern Ireland and north east England lagged behind. Figures released by the Office of National Statistics reveal that 31m people in the UK were in employment in April 2015, forcing the unemployment rate down to 5.5 per cent nationally. Meanwhile, wage [...]
Queen bees contribute more to the UK economy than the Queen herself June 17, 2015 Pollinating bees contribute an estimated £651m to the UK's economy each year by helping crops to grow, researchers at the University of Reading have suggested – £150m more than the value of tourism brought to Britain by the Royal Family. The results, published in the journal Nature Communications, show that apples and strawberries are particularly reliant [...]
Greek crisis: UK stepping up contingency plans for Grexit says George Osborne June 17, 2015 The government has started planning for a Greek exit from the Eurozone, George Osborne has confirmed. Read more: European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker says Greece has been misleading its voters A Grexit would pose "serious economic risks" to the UK, the chancellor said today, as David Cameron prepares to discuss the crisis with Italy's Prime Minister [...]
Sterling jumps as UK wage growth smashes expectations and unemployment falls again June 17, 2015 The pound leaped 0.54 per cent against the dollar to $1.5715 this morning, after data from the Office for National Statistics showed wages grew 2.7 per cent between February and April. Wage growth is at its fastest rate since Augest 2001, smashing expectations of 2.5 per cent. It is significantly higher than inflation, which stands at 0.1 [...]