The increasing levels of tension being felt around the need to bring the economy back into growth are shown by a new proposal from the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC). “As debate rages”, the BCC has suggested that if the economy does not improve within six months then the budgets for health and overseas aid should …
Continue reading “Increased desperation in debate to escape downturn”
The US Federal Reserve launched its $400bn ‘Operation Twist’ as expected, selling short term bonds (under three years) and using the cash raised to buy long-dated treasuries.
The price of gold is being forecast to pass $2,000 an ounce next year. And yet miners/manufacturers of industrial metals, such as iron and copper, are finding customers asking for shipments to be delayed. This is a “marked shift in industry sentiment from only six weeks ago, when most … groups painted a bullish outlook for commodities …
Nick Clegg, Deputy Prime Minister, is expected to tell his party conference today that Britain can invest its way out of the downturn. However, it is proving difficult to identify projects that can be started quickly, and the government is hampered by its need to cut spending on existing activities. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/cff32134-e3b7-11e0-bd3d-00144feabdc0.html At the same time …
Tesco, striving to build ‘the people’s bank’, had been expected to introduce mortgages this autumn. But plans have had to be postponed as the company struggles with IT systems and a “raft of tougher legislation.” Tesco has been very keen to move into banking, having been negatively affected by price rises on core purchases such …
At least three stories in today’s FT have this theme: Alan Lewis, the millionaire property and retail entrepreneur, has put the Tommy Nutter brand up for sale. Tommy Nutter made three of the suits worn by The Beatles on the cover of Abbey Road, as well as the suit that Mick Jagger wore to his …
The price of gold has risen by over 25% this year, yet mining stocks are in the doldrums. Why? “It is something everybody is thinking about at the moment”, says the manager of one of the largest gold funds. Prices of gold and mines have diverged in the past but the mining stocks have always …
Two weeks ago Siemens withdrew over €500m from a ‘large French bank’, and deposited it with the European Central Bank. Partly this may be because the ECB is paying a higher interest rate (which surely means more risk?). But it seems more likely that Siemens fears there is a significant risk that the ‘large French …
Continue reading “How the eurozone crisis affects businesses”
In this talk Tim Jackson examines the current economic crisis and finds that the solution isn’t about “curtailing possibilities”: “It’s about opening up: about allowing ourselves the freedom to become fully human, recognising the breath and the depth of the human psyche, and building institutions to protect [that]. … And at the heart… a more credible, …
Central banks in Europe and emerging market countries have been buying more gold. Globally, central banks are “set to buy more gold this year than at any time since the collapse of the Bretton Woods system, 40 years ago.” But, apparently, their purchases are “minuscule compared with the size of the global gold market” — …