Sweden turns the page and Scandinavian noir explains why August 27, 2012 EVERYONE knows that Sweden is a social-democratic paradise, where taxes are high, the welfare state is big and everyone enjoys the benefits. That doesn’t mean it’s true. In recent years, research like that compiled in Richard Wilkinson’s and Kate Pickett’s The Spirit Level has painted Sweden and its Scandinavian neighbours as political role models. The [...]
How to enjoy the sun while it lasts August 16, 2012 Film 4 Summer Screen Somerset House £10; Until 25 August Set in the jaw-droppingly beautiful Edmond J Safra fountain court, this is the ideal way to spend a summer evening in London. Likewise, if you enjoy open-air cinema then this is the destination for you. Classics including Hitchcock’s menacing The Birds will be showing on [...]
Wet weather helps lift sales at Carpetright July 24, 2012 CARPETRIGHT, the troubled floor coverings retailer, showed some signs of recovery yesterday after revamped stores and improvements to its bed range helped boost first quarter sales. The group, which has issued a string of profit warnings over the last two years, said like-for-like sales at its 486 UK stores rose 1.7 per cent in the [...]
The cigarette display ban is a smoking gun in the war on free expression August 20, 2012 THERE’S something odd about my local Tesco. Since April, the kiosk at the entrance has looked incredibly dull. As I was recently trying to work out why, I saw a sign saying that all cigarettes and tobacco-related products must now be hidden behind closed doors – to comply with UK regulations. As an economist, I [...]
US and Chinese firms could flee City if EU rules are not changed July 9, 2012 THE CITY could take a major hit if planned EU derivatives rules are forced through, an influential House of Lords committee warned today, as international investors could be driven out of the UK and EU. The markets in financial instruments directive (Mifid 2) “could lock third country firms out of the EU markets, which would [...]
London homes still horribly expensive for first time buyers July 15, 2012 FIRST, the good news: the housing market is becoming less unaffordable for young people across the UK. The average price paid by a first-time buyer in June was affordable for someone on average earnings in 54 per cent of all UK local authority districts, the highest proportion for 10 years, according to the Halifax. At [...]
Returns diminish as central banks act July 15, 2012 FIVE years on from the start of the financial crisis, have markets become immune to central bank action? Three recently unveiled another batch of stimulus: the Bank of England increased its asset purchase programme by £50bn; the European Central Bank cut its marginal lending rate, cut interest rates by 25 basis points and, perhaps most [...]
British house prices fall at slower rate in May June 12, 2012 British house prices fell at a slower pace in May, although the outlook worsened as the Eurozone crisis intensified according to a survey by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors. The seasonally adjusted house price balance rose to -16 from -19 in April, beating economists’ forecasts for a -18 reading. London was again the only [...]
Hollande’s raid on rich is the wrong kind of revolution August 21, 2012 AFTER little more than a hundred days in power, French President François Hollande’s popularity is dropping fast. Recent polls show that 54 per cent of French citizens are dissatisfied with his performance, compared with approximately 40 per cent in July. It’s little wonder – taxes on the rich, which initially attracted voters, are in danger [...]
Bloomsbury sees ebook sales surge by 70pc in market shift July 11, 2012 EBOOK sales have jumped by 70 per cent at Bloomsbury, the publishing house announced yesterday, as the company heralded a “seismic shift” in publishing. The rapid rise in year-on-year digital sales for the three months to June means that the publisher now sells more ebooks than hardback editions in America. Print sales fell by two [...]