US factories defy slump in world output December 1, 2011 MANUFACTURING production plummeted in the Eurozone, UK and China in November, Markit’s purchasing managers’ indices (PMI) showed yesterday, yet US industry kept expanding. Eurozone manufacturing PMI hit a 28-month low, with job losses in all 17 members of the currency bloc except Germany and Austria. PMI fell to 46.4 from 47.1 in October. Any figure [...]
Ireland service sector stalls as demand slows June 3, 2011 Ireland’s services sector posted anaemic growth in May with new export orders just making up for weak domestic demand, a new survey has show. The NCB Purchasing Managers’ Index, which measures activity in the services sector nudged up to 50.5 from 50.2 in April, just above the 50 mark separating growth from contraction. New business [...]
US e-book sales overtake print April 14, 2011 SALES of electronic books (e-books)?have overtaken those of print books in the US for the first time ever, according to data published by the Association of American Publishers. Revenues from e-book sales soared 169 per cent to $90.3m (£60m) during January and February of this year while sales in paper books dropped 25 per cent [...]
How public opinion shapes economic debate September 13, 2011 LAST week we held a two-day forum to launch YouGov-Cambridge, a new think-tank that unites world-class thinkers with research data to understand the role that public opinion plays in decision-making within politics and business. Themed “Consumer networks and the diffusion of power” with guests such as Jimmy Wales, Steve Hilton, Nassim Taleb and Imran Khan, [...]
How public opinion shapes economic debate September 13, 2011 LAST week we held a two-day forum to launch YouGov-Cambridge, a new think-tank that unites world-class thinkers with research data to understand the role that public opinion plays in decision-making within politics and business. Themed “Consumer networks and the diffusion of power” with guests such as Jimmy Wales, Steve Hilton, Nassim Taleb and Imran Khan, [...]
Punch struggles as Spirit profits rise October 20, 2011 Spirit reported a 17 per cent rise in full-year pretax profit, at the top end of expectations, while Punch Taverns, from which it demerged earlier this year, said full-year profit fell. “We have made a good start to the new financial year and, while we expect the consumer environment to be more challenging, we are [...]
Punch struggles as Spirit profits rise October 20, 2011 Spirit reported a 17 per cent rise in full-year pretax profit, at the top end of expectations, while Punch Taverns, from which it demerged earlier this year, said full-year profit fell. “We have made a good start to the new financial year and, while we expect the consumer environment to be more challenging, we are [...]
Inflation worries hits Germany March 29, 2011 German consumer confidence will decline for the first time in ten months in April, researchers GfK said yesterday. Spiralling energy and food price pressures were cited for the uncertain outlook. However, German inflation remained stagnant at 2.1 per cent in March, official data showed.
Eurozone high street morale slips March 23, 2011 Consumer confidence in the Eurozone suffered a knock in February. The European Commission’s “flash” index slipped back to -10.6, having recovered to -10 in February.
BEST OF THE BROKERS May 5, 2011 EASYJET Nomura expects the airline to report a half-year pre-tax loss of £162m at its update next Tuesday, hammered by rising fuel prices and disruption in North Africa. However, the broker expects the weakening dollar to give easyJet a rare tailwind, as it runs on a material short dollar position, and predicts a full-year profit [...]