Rouble, ringgit and won: Emerging market currencies are getting hammered August 23, 2015 Emerging market currencies continued to slide today, amid growing anxiety over China's slowing economy. The selloff accelerated after a purchasing managers survey released early this morning showed China's factories contracted at the fastest rate in almost six-and-a-half-years in August. Malaysia's ringgit fell nearly one per cent against the dollar, while South Korea’s won shed 0.8 [...]
New Zealand, Turkey and Australia: The countries where your pension pot will go furthest July 10, 2015 Thinking of retiring abroad? New pension freedoms mean Britons can (theoretically) transfer larger amounts of cash abroad than ever before – but what does that mean for those in the market for a home somewhere balmier? New research by foreign currency and international transfer currency Fairfx suggests those looking to move abroad should look to [...]
Christmas quiz 2015: How much do you remember of the year in business, politics and economics? December 23, 2015 Deloitte chief economist Ian Stewart asks some of the trickiest business, politics and economics questions of the year. Answers can be found below. 1 According to the OECD, Mexicans work the longest hours. In 2014, the average Mexican worker put in 2,228 hours, equivalent to a 43-hour working week with no holidays. Which country’s workers [...]
The shared economy and peer-to-peer payments are transforming business lending and P2P is here to stay September 22, 2015 Anyone who has kept an eye on the financial services landscape over the past decade will have noticed that digital technology is transforming and disrupting many traditional product markets. The latest innovation is from PayPal, an early pioneer in online payments, who are offering a smartphone app to help get your money back if you've [...]
Manufacturers struggle amid weak demand August 3, 2015 GROWTH in the UK’s manufacturing sector was sluggish in July, new survey data reveal, as firms struggle to export. It contrasts with robust manufacturing growth in the Eurozone, with Italy seeing the sector’s fastest expansion for four years. However, Eurozone exports also suffered from weak global demand. The widely watched UK Markit manufacturing purchasing managers’ index [...]
IMF tells China to let currency trade freely May 26, 2015 China’s government is being urged to liberalise more of its economy, and let markets operate more freely in its finance sectors. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) yesterday urged the authorities to let its currency, the renminbi, trade freely, and asked the government to target a free-floating exchange rate in the next two to three years. [...]
Strong sterling fails to hinder UK exporters May 17, 2015 Britain’s manufacturers are seeing a sharp rise in exports despite unfavourable exchange rates, according to survey data released today by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) and delivery firm DHL Express. A greater number of export orders was seen by 46 per cent of manufacturers in the first three months of the year. It compares [...]
Autumn Statement 2014: £2bn cash boost for NHS is not enough, says Labour November 30, 2014 Chancellor George Osborne announced a £2bn boost to NHS spending yesterday, ahead of formal plans which will be set out in the Autumn Statement. However, Labour hit back almost immediately, arguing that the extra cash is nowhere near enough to plug a hole in the healthcare budget. Speaking on the Andrew Marr show yesterday the [...]
S&P 500 and Dow Jones jump as US markets open higher on Greece deal – but euro continues to fall July 13, 2015 Stocks opened higher after this morning's deal between Greece and its lenders. The S&P 500 jumped 0.8 per cent at the opening bell, while the Dow rose just over one per cent. Earlier, European markets had all reacted positively to the news, opening higher and maintaining that optimism, with the FTSE 100 hovering around 6,713 [...]
Why the disadvantaged have been education reform’s biggest winners August 13, 2015 THE SCHOOL reforms in England since 2010 have been underpinned by the rationale that a good education is emancipating and liberating; that it allows access to a world of opportunities and interests where an individual’s destiny is in their own hands. In order to achieve that goal, the coalition and now the Conservatives have undertaken [...]