Amazon helped push S&P 500 to its best day in two months yesterday May 10, 2016 A rally in Amazon stock and a jump in the oil price helped push US shares up on Tuesday – with the S&P 500 enjoying its best day in two months. Amazon's share price jumped 3.43 per cent to a record of $703.07, which boosted the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, after investment firm Bernstein upped [...]
Russian oil boss Sechin declares Opec effectively extinct May 10, 2016 The head of Russia's biggest oil firm declared the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) effectively extinct. Igor Sechin, a close ally of Russian president Vladimir Putin, told Reuters that internal strife is killing the cartel and its ability to steer the oil market has all but evaporated. Read more: Oil and gas execs flag Opec policy as biggest [...]
Saudi Aramco says it’s likely to ramp up production to meet rising demand May 10, 2016 Saudi Aramco is likely to ramp up oil production to meet rising demand, at a time when global oil markets are already awash with crude. Speaking in a news briefing today, Amin Nasser, the chief executive of Saudi Arabia's state-owned oil company, Saudi Arabian Oil, known as Saudi Aramco, said: "We're seeing an increase in global demand. We're meeting [...]
Grexit odds shorten as potential debt relief deal brings the bailout saga back into the headlines May 10, 2016 Greece may have edged closer to a deal with its creditors for debt relief, but the troubled Eurozone nation is not out of the woods yet, as bookies say there is a decent chance it could be kicked out of the single currency bloc. Yesterday, Greece's parliament passed controversial proposals to reform its pensions and tax [...]
Greek debt relief deal OK’ed after German backdown to IMF May 9, 2016 Greece’s battered economy received some good news yesterday after Eurozone finance ministers agreed to debt relief measures if new reforms come to fruition. The Mediterranean state will be granted longer grace periods and bond maturities from 2018 if it upholds the reforms agreed to in its most recent bailout package. The move is a concession [...]
Panama Papers: Database of names connected to offshore accounts revealed in leaked information from Mossack Fonseca goes live May 9, 2016 A database containing over 300,000 names connected with offshore accounts has gone live on the internet this evening. The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), which initially reported on the Panama Papers in April, has launched a searchable database, accessible here. Users can search for specific names, or see lists of the companies and individuals [...]
What will happen if there is a Brexit? Who knows, economists say May 9, 2016 Determining what would happen in the case of a vote for a Brexit on 23 June is incredibly difficult as there are flaws in the information such predictions are based on, a group of economists has said this evening. Speaking at an event hosted by the Institute of Directors (IoD) and the London School of Economics' Alumni Organisation, Dr [...]
Russia and the UK have lowest effective corporate tax rate May 9, 2016 Both Russia and the UK are two of the major global economies which try to tempt businesses with a favourable tax environment. They offer companies the lowest effective tax rates among the world's best economies, according to a study by accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young. Firms in Russia are obliged to pay business tax at 20 per cent, Bloomberg reported. Meanwhile, companies in [...]
Donald Trump will lose and Trumpism will die with him May 9, 2016 Following his decisive victory over senator Ted Cruz in the Indiana primary, Donald Trump is king of all he surveys, now the undisputed Republican nominee for President. A new conventional wisdom has already settled on this stunning turn of events, noting that, while Trump has no chance of victory – like the Barry Goldwater conservative [...]
Saudi Arabia ousts long-serving oil minister Ali Al Naimi sparking fears volatility will return to the oil market May 8, 2016 Saudi Arabia’s dismissal of its oil minister yesterday has sparked concerns that fresh volatility is about to hit the market. The kingdom ousted its long-serving oil minister who was the driver behind Opec's 2014 policy of holding production despite plummeting oil prices. Ali al-Naimi, who held the post from 1995, has been replaced by Khalid Al Falih, chairman of [...]