Corporate bonds hit $1,000bn August 18, 2009 Global corporate bond issuance has risen to a record $1,103bn (£666bn) in 2009, with four months of the year to go, according to data provider Dealogic. The boom is because of the difficulty firms face in getting loans and strong demand from investors, who can gain big yields on corporate paper compared with government bonds. [...]
Upbeat economic sentiment boosts FTSE to above 5,000 October 5, 2009 THE FTSE 100 closed higher yesterday after US Institute for Supply Management non-manufacturing data came in better than forecast, with miners and banks the best performing sectors. The index closed up 35.63 points, or 0.7 per cent, at 5,024.33, after tumbling nearly 60 points on Friday to a near three-week closing low below the 5,000 [...]
CBI boss Richard Lambert can see early signs of economic recovery November 19, 2009 THE worst is over for the British economy. At least, that was the message from Richard Lambert, the Confederation of Business Industry’s (CBI) thoughtful director-general, when we meet. “We have finally hit the deck,” he tells me, leaning forward. “Things are a lot better now than in the first quarter of this year. Where we [...]
TORIES TO WAGE WAR ON WORKSHY October 4, 2009 CONSERVATIVE leader David Cameron yesterday promised to shake up Britain’s complex welfare system and to slash the numbers of long-term unemployed. Speaking on the eve of the four-day Tory party conference in Manchester, Cameron promised to use tax reform and deregulation to help employers take on new staff. He said private training firms would be [...]
The power plant boss who is busy trying to clean up her firm’s act December 16, 2009 T he best way to describe the chief executive of Drax power station Dorothy Thompson is to say that she is poised – a quality that will undoubtedly come in handy when it comes to navigating a path through energy markets beset with low demand and ever more onerous climate change targets. When one meets [...]
United easier without Ron, taunts Micah September 17, 2009 MANCHESTER CITY defender Micah Richards has fanned the flames ahead of Sunday’s local derby by insisting Manchester United miss Cristiano Ronaldo. United sit second in the Premier League but have yet to find top gear this season, since selling £80m winger Ronaldo to Real Madrid over the summer. And Richards believes that makes them ripe [...]
Pulling MACHINE October 6, 2009 AS I write this, I am sitting watching the sunset across the Gulf of St Tropez, about to drive back to Blighty towing a photographer friend’s two-tonne boat. My friend Kos, you see, is a yacht photographer who uses a Range Rover Sport to tow her boats to sailing regattas around Europe. She is looking [...]
Now is the time to buy the home of your dreams in affordable Essex October 29, 2009 GOOD schools, an easy commute, beautiful countryside, a rich history and realistic prices. Banish any ideas of brash barrow boys and women in white leather stilettos – Essex has become the discerning commuter’s paradise. This is a good time to buy, too. Gavin Surtees, of Savills’ Loughton office, says: “If anyone is looking to trade [...]
Now is the time to buy the home of your dreams in affordable Essex October 29, 2009 GOOD schools, an easy commute, beautiful countryside, a rich history and realistic prices. Banish any ideas of brash barrow boys and women in white leather stilettos – Essex has become the discerning commuter’s paradise. This is a good time to buy, too. Gavin Surtees, of Savills’ Loughton office, says: “If anyone is looking to trade [...]
CITY ANGER AS BROWN SIGNS UP TO BONUS CAP September 3, 2009 THE bitter row over the future of the City intensified yesterday after Prime Minister GordonBrown signed up to a joint Franco-German letter which signalled a fresh, much harsher line against bonuses. The letter to the G20 chairman, coming ahead of today’s meetings, said they should “explore ways to limit total variable remuneration in a bank [...]