US housing starts edge down August 16, 2011 US housing starts fell less than expected in July as builders broke ground on new multifamily units likely to meet demand for rental apartments, while permits for future construction dropped, a government report showed yesterday. Housing starts were down 1.5 per cent to 604,000 in July from a downwardly revised 613,000 in June. Meanwhile, import [...]
America’s solar scandal is a warning: Bankrupt climate policies boost tax, not jobs October 11, 2011 IN SEPTEMBER 2009, the United States Department of Energy gave a $530m (£339m) loan guarantee to the solar company Solyndra. President Barack Obama said at the plant: “It’s here that companies like Solyndra are leading the way, towards a brighter and more prosperous future.” In September 2011, the company collapsed, the jobs which the Vice [...]
CRH to miss earnings forecasts August 16, 2011 Irish building materials group CRH said yesterday it would miss analysts’ expectations for earnings growth of 11 per cent this year as it grapples with high raw materials costs and poor economic growth prospects. A major player in the US market, where it is the leading producer of asphalt for highway construction, CRH’s first-half earnings [...]
CRH to miss earnings forecasts August 16, 2011 Irish building materials group CRH said yesterday it would miss analysts’ expectations for earnings growth of 11 per cent this year as it grapples with high raw materials costs and poor economic growth prospects. A major player in the US market, where it is the leading producer of asphalt for highway construction, CRH’s first-half earnings [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING September 25, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES US TAX AUTHORITIES TARGET BANK DEALS US tax authorities are targeting cross-border finance deals worth billions of dollars between leading US and UK banks as they step up efforts to clamp down on abusive tax avoidance, a joint investigation by the Financial Times and ProPublica has found. Four US banks – BB&T, Bank [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING September 25, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES US TAX AUTHORITIES TARGET BANK DEALS US tax authorities are targeting cross-border finance deals worth billions of dollars between leading US and UK banks as they step up efforts to clamp down on abusive tax avoidance, a joint investigation by the Financial Times and ProPublica has found. Four US banks – BB&T, Bank [...]
Creating the right jobs is harder than it looks September 26, 2011 BARACK Obama realises that the key to keeping his own job is to start creating them for other people. The US unemployment figures are high (above 9 per cent), sustained (the recession officially ended almost two years ago), and deepening (half of the unemployed have been out of work for more than 6 months). His [...]
Government outsourcing gives boost to Carillion August 24, 2011 SUPPORT services and construction group Carillion posted a 10 per cent rise in first-half profit yesterday, driven by a surge in demand for public sector outsourcing as cash-strapped local authorities looked to cut costs. The group, which maintains motorways, railways, military bases and telephone lines, said pre-tax profit increased to £72.5m on revenues two per [...]
MPs slam private finance initiative and call for liabilities to go on balance sheet August 18, 2011 THE COST of building schools and hospitals using the controversial private finance initiative (PFI) should be included on the government’s balance sheet, a group of influential MPs will say today. In a highly critical report, the Treasury select committee will say that PFI does not provide taxpayers with good value for money and recommend that [...]
Interserve posts a climb in earnings and predicts growth in outsourcing August 10, 2011 SHARES in Interserve, the support services and construction group, rose 10.5 per cent yesterday after the group posted higher first-half profits, saying it was confident about its medium-term outlook as demand for outsourcing gathered pace. The company, whose clients include the BBC, the NHS and retailers including Sainsbury’s, said pre-tax profits rose 10.3 per cent [...]