How can it be that, at a time when the economy is struggling, economic forecasts are gloomy, the government is cutting back its spending significantly, “shareholders in UK companies enjoyed strong growth in dividends”? Growth in commodity prices helped mining companies in particular. Vodafone, in a sector reported to be “struggling”, posted the largest total …
Daily archives: October 17, 2011
FSA blocks ‘liquidity swaps’
The FSA has blocked an undisclosed number of trades of undisclosed assets between banks and insurers. The banks/insurers say these would help their liquidity, by lending/borrowing a relatively easy to trade portfolio of gilts or bonds, secured against a portfolio of other less-liquid assets. The FSA says the resulting cross-holdings would make the financial system more …
“Ever closer union”
Support is growing in Germany for greater fiscal (and hence political) union amongst the euro countries, as the way to solve the euro zone crisis. Germany is the largest net contributor to the EU budget. Other countries are currently less keen. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/873e4b14-f7f1-11e0-a419-00144feab49a.html
Regional tensions over oil (South China Sea)
China has warned India to stop working with Vietnam to develop oil and gas fields in teh South China Sea that Vietnam considers lie under its territory. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/8316f698-f801-11e0-8e7e-00144feab49a.html
European recession “likely” or “already here”
Several major European car manufacturers have scheduled days with zero production, on the expectation that the market will shrink again in 2012, “a further indication that the debt crisis is beginning to hit the real economy.” And in this article the head of one of the US’s biggest manufacturers warns that the US and …
Continue reading “European recession “likely” or “already here””
Market volatility threatens to delay sale of EMI
Tight credit markets (and risk-off attitudes) continue to make it difficult to find buyers for company sales. The latest victim of this trend appears to be EMI, although as one adviser pointed out, this could just be posturing. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/17bc296e-f6b6-11e0-9381-00144feab49a.html
EU faces 20 years of rising energy costs
An EU report has been leaked, which describes five scenarios for how we might meet our energy and carbon-reduction targets by 2050. Details are sketchy, and clearly depend on assumptions about the costs of investments, the life-cycles of new generating capacity, depreciation policies, and levels of government subsidy. Some of the projections seem lower than …