FTSE up as UK manufacturing decline slows July 2, 2012 The FTSE 100 edged up this morning as new data showed that the decline in UK manufacturing slowed in June. The manufacturing PMI – a respected survey of the sector – stood at at 48.6, up from 45.9 in May and well ahead of the consensus forecast of 46.5. New orders also rose strongly to [...]
Osborne faces a delicate balancing act on train ticket hikes August 14, 2012 WHEN the majestic Shard formally opened earlier this summer I was interested to learn that its architect Renzo Piano only catered for 48 car parking spaces in the building’s bowels. “It’s another big shift,” he was quoted as saying. “To tell people, look, stop going around in cars.” Piano’s thinking makes a lot of sense. [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 17, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES M&S to charge for current accounts Marks and Spencer is set to become the first UK bank to shun free current accounts as it plans to charge all customers a monthly fee for banking services when it launches later this year. The retailer said it would offer two accounts, priced at £15 and [...]
Consumers cool on buying replica kit July 9, 2012 YOU can buy plenty of all-weather gear from the JJB Sports website, but that didn’t help the retailer’s performance in May and June, which yesterday it partly put down to the dismal summer weather. With its shares falling off a cliff on the news, down almost 25 per cent over the day, markets clearly aren’t [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS June 6, 2012 Winston & Strawn Justin McClelland has joined the law firm from Milband as a partner in its global commercial litigation practice. He started his legal career at Slaughter & May, and previously served in Army Legal Services, reaching the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was appointed a Member of the British Empire (MBE) in 1998. PIMCO [...]
StanChart: UK encouraging shift of money to Asia by goldplating May 20, 2012 THE HEAD of Standard Chartered’s European bank has warned that the UK is accelerating the shift of economic power from west to east by goldplating bank regulations. Richard Holmes, head of StanChart’s European business, told City A.M. that Britain’s approach could cause a “creep” of investment away from London. “What’s going on here is forcing [...]
Inflation falls at last – but the damage has already been done June 20, 2012 AT last, Britain’s inflation problem is abating. Prices are still increasing too quickly – inflation remains at 3.1 per cent on the retail price index and 2.8 per cent on the consumer price index, painful as wages are growing far less quickly. But the direction of travel is reassuring. The Bank of England – by [...]
Inflation falls at last – but the damage has already been done June 19, 2012 AT last, Britain’s inflation problem is abating. Prices are still increasing too quickly – inflation remains at 3.1 per cent on the retail price index and 2.8 per cent on the consumer price index, painful as wages are growing far less quickly. But the direction of travel is reassuring. The Bank of England – by [...]
BLACKSTONE SNAPS UP DEVONSHIRE SQUARE May 9, 2012 BLACKSTONE Group has expanded its property presence in London, buying the 12-building Devonshire Square office and retail complex from rival Rockpoint and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. The deal was signed on Friday for just under £340m – about 17 per cent below the £410m paid by Rockpoint and ADIA for the five-acre site in [...]
Former BlackRock City offices set for major redevelopment June 6, 2012 PLANS to redevelop BlackRock’s City headquarters into a new 319,000 square feet office block were recommended for approval yesterday, as the latest office block in the Square Mile takes a step closer to construction. The island site at 33 King William Street on the north side of London Bridge is owned by Topland, the property [...]