What you need to know before the open May 20, 2014 A mixed open for European markets this morning. Yesterday, the Dax and Cac managed to finish on a positive note, but the 10 per cent drop AstraZeneca shares saw kept the FTSE in negative territory. On the data front, the Office for National Statistics will be releasing several key data at 9.30 this morning, with [...]
Putin has exposed a chilling truth about the West: It no longer exists July 22, 2014 Somehow Europe’s leaders have managed to undershoot even my subterranean expectations. Ahead of an EU foreign ministers meeting yesterday to plan a common response to the Malaysia Airlines atrocity, leaks made it all too clear that this whole process would not amount to much. But the results – even for the EU – are almost comically [...]
Inside Track: Banks in clover as new issues continue to defy critics June 19, 2014 Far from being on its uppers as some of the moodier fund managers have predicted, London’s new issues market continues to show resilience as we come up to the half-way point in the year. Mid-June is when the City’s big investment bank houses conduct their mid-year reviews and on the whole they make for positive [...]
Bank of England holds policy – but analysts still expect Carney to pull rate hike trigger first May 8, 2014 The members of the Bank of England's interest-rate setting committee have voted to hold policy. Interest rates will stay put at 0.5 per cent, while asset purchases will be maintained at current levels. Despite the (widely expected) inaction from the Monetary Policy Commitee, there are rumblings that the Bank of England could now be first [...]
British equity markets party like it’s 1999 May 13, 2014 THE FTSE 100 jumped to a 14-year high yesterday, smashing through a record level set just before the turn of the century. The UK’s major index of stocks ended at 6,873.08, up 0.31 per cent, having peaked at over 6,877 during the day. The FTSE’s all-time high at the end of 1999 was 6,950.6, a [...]
Bovis Homes ramps up house building by 80pc in 2014 May 16, 2014 No doubt some pleasing news for the powers that be: Bovis Homes says it built 80 per cent more homes in the first four months of this year, aware of the “importance of its positive contribution to the government's ambition to increase new homes production.” The surging demand for more homes has significantly buoyed performance for [...]
How much does a house in the UK really cost? April 15, 2014 Buying a home in the UK will set you back £235,000 on average, according to the latest figures published this morning by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). “But hold on a minute,” I hear the news-hounds among you say. “Yesterday I read that it was much higher than that.” And indeed you may have. [...]
Letters to the Editor – 14/04 – Let the people vote, Housing bank, Best of Twitter April 14, 2014 Let the people vote [Re: Let voters kick out MPs between elections and watch standards soar, Thursday] The right to recall is a vital addition to Britain’s democratic toolkit. Some argue that it would mark the end of representative democracy – our MPs would become delegates, following the whim of public opinion. But who can [...]
How much does a house in the UK really cost? April 15, 2014 Buying a home in the UK will set you back £235,000 on average, according to the latest figures published this morning by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). “But hold on a minute,” I hear the news-hounds among you say. “Yesterday I read that it was much higher than that.” And indeed you may have. [...]
Bermondsey has City professionals lined up for homes May 8, 2014 “Spa” development hopes to revive former industrial heartland LONDON Bridge and Borough have secured their place in the capital as desirable residential locations. But the fate of its neighbour, Bermondsey, is yet to be secured. As a former industrial heartland in London, a sizeable portion of its housing stock is made up of warehouse conversions [...]