IEA wants oil supply increased May 19, 2011 THE International Energy Agency (IEA) yesterday urged oil producing countries to increase supply to avoid “derailing the economic recovery”. The organisation says high oil prices are threatening the global recovery by reducing spending power and driving up inflation, placing upward pressure on interest rates. The IEA statement suggests it could release emergency stockpiles if action [...]
Politicians are to blame if we have crony capitalists January 18, 2012 CAPITALISM has a problem. Increasingly it is viewed as a deeply unfair system favouring a small, privileged elite at the expense of everyone else. Our politicians have been quick to join the criticism. Last week David Cameron mooted granting extra powers to shareholders to restrain executive pay. Today he will give a speech on how [...]
Britain’s healthcare system is on the critical list – why are medical unions in denial? January 25, 2012 IT REALLY is time public sector unions stopped taking the lazy option. And those representing the medical profession, above all, should be showing the rest of their comrades leadership – for decisions made over the nation’s healthcare are a matter of life and death. Yet the doctors’ union is threatening to strike over the current [...]
Britain’s healthcare system is on the critical list – why are medical unions in denial? January 25, 2012 IT REALLY is time public sector unions stopped taking the lazy option. And those representing the medical profession, above all, should be showing the rest of their comrades leadership – for decisions made over the nation’s healthcare are a matter of life and death. Yet the doctors’ union is threatening to strike over the current [...]
Petrol congress meets amid Middle East unrest December 4, 2011 THE TWENTIETH World Petroleum Congress kicks off in the Qatari capital of Doha this week, aiming to boost dialogue among stakeholders in the petroleum industry and beyond. It is the first time the triennial event has ever been held in the Middle East. It could not have come to the region at a more crucial [...]
Petrol congress meets amid Middle East unrest December 4, 2011 THE TWENTIETH World Petroleum Congress kicks off in the Qatari capital of Doha this week, aiming to boost dialogue among stakeholders in the petroleum industry and beyond. It is the first time the triennial event has ever been held in the Middle East. It could not have come to the region at a more crucial [...]
Clegg under fire after calls for infrastucture spending September 14, 2011 DEPUTY Prime Minister Nick Clegg’s proposals to boost the economy by prioritising infrastructure spending were rejected by several economists and business leaders yesterday. Clegg’s plans for speeding up spending on projects like Crossrail and boosting the M25’s capacity “will not bring about growth,” warned Mark Littlewood from the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA). “What we need [...]
Oil prices in a fierce tug of war October 23, 2011 DIFFERENT VIEWS ON WHETHER THE OIL PRICE IS GOING UP OR DOWN – CRAIG DRAKE IS UNSURE, LIOR ALKALAY IS BULLISH CRUDE prices fell last week on the assumption that the demise of Muammar Gaddafi would have the magical effect of freeing up oil supplies. Gaddafi’s welcome demise is hopefully a sign that Libya will [...]
A wholesale improvement is the only way for UK banks to weather the Eurozone storm December 21, 2011 FOR the past fifteen months, the Bank of England (BoE) has been backpedalling. Instead of coasting, the UK economy has stalled. The government’s bold and sensible plans for budget deficit reduction are broadly on track for the next few months, but will not remain so unless the central bank shapes up to the challenge of [...]
Monetary policy is not all about pulling levers November 7, 2011 I’M A big fan of the Bank of England museum. I find the way it attempts to educate children about how monetary policy is conducted to be charming. There is an exhibit with a tube of clear plastic containing a ball. The tube is “balanced” when the ball is level with a marker for 2 [...]