Why won’t Labour have lunch with the City? We’d welcome an honest debate July 29, 2014 WHEN Labour left power in 1979, many of the party’s grandees and politicians accepted invitations to have lunch with me and a coterie of City bankers. Harold Wilson, James Callaghan, Peter Shore and Eric Heffer numbered among those who agreed to some gentle hospitality, providing an opportunity for all parties to exchange views and ideas [...]
Shapland is named Poundland chair in retail merry-go-round July 29, 2014 Poundland yesterday named Darren Shapland as its new chairman after losing its current boss to the troubled supermarket Morrisons in the latest round of retail musical chairs. Shapland joined the bargain chain’s board as a senior independent director ahead of its £750m float in March after a brief stint as chief executive of the flooring [...]
Scots finances prompt scrap May 28, 2014 THE TWO sides of the Scottish independence debate went head to head yesterday over the state of the nation’s finances if it votes for independence later this year. Launching a report in Edinburgh, Scottish first minister Alex Salmond said an independent Scotland could generate £1,000 extra revenue per head in 15 years without tax hikes. [...]
BT leads the FTSE 100 fallers on pension and regulation fears June 16, 2014 TELECOMS group BT dragged the FTSE 100 index down yesterday on concerns that it will be hit by an increase in its pension deficit and that Ofcom is preparing to crackdown on its wholesale pricing of superfast broadband. BT’s shares dropped 2.4 per cent, the biggest individual faller on the FTSE 100, with traders citing [...]
London Report: FTSE falls on BT pension fears and builders June 16, 2014 BRITAIN’S top share index slipped yesterday as concerns about a large increase in its pension deficit hit BT Group, while housebuilders extended their recent sell-off on prospects of a UK rate hike. BT fell 2.4 per cent, one of the biggest drags on the FTSE 100. Traders cited a Sunday Times report which said that [...]
British savers free to choose at last March 19, 2014 @allisterheath WHAT a remarkable, extraordinary Budget. In recent years, the chancellor’s announcements have largely been ignored by the financial markets; not yesterday. This was the biggest market-moving Budget that I can remember, with the shares of many of the City’s blue chip financial companies crashing and others rocketing. It contained the greatest surprise in years [...]
MasterCard earnings up 14 per cent as buyers switch to plastic October 31, 2013 MASTERCARD, the world’s second-biggest credit and debit card company, reported a 14 per cent rise in quarterly profit yesterday as more people across the world used plastic instead of cash. MasterCard and larger rival Visa have been trying to capture new business in emerging markets, where cash payments still dominate but use of cards is [...]
Ghana sends plane with $3m in cash to pay World Cup squad June 25, 2014 Ghana has dispatched a plane with more than $3m in cash to Brazil to pay their World Cup squad growing increasingly agitated at not having received their appearance fees. The country's president, John Dramani Mahama, had to wade into the matter and ensure the money reached the players by this afternoon, averting the risk of [...]
The Queen’s Speech: Recall, pensions and heroism June 4, 2014 Small business bill If a big bank turns down a small firm’s loan application, they will have to refer it on to other lenders. Zero-hours contracts can no longer include an exclusivity clause that ban workers from taking several such jobs. Tax-free childcare will be extended to under-12s from 2015 in a bid to make [...]
UK mega pensions aren’t a bad idea – if government can resist destroying them June 3, 2014 IN THE Queen’s Speech today, the government is likely to give the go-ahead for large pension schemes along Dutch lines. Such collective defined contribution schemes have many advantages. They allow managers to pursue return targets without giving guarantees. Risks can be shared between generations and costs can be kept down as a result of economies [...]