S&P 500 hits two month high – New York Report October 22, 2015 Stronger-than-expected earnings from several top companies relieved investors’ concerns yesterday about the profit outlook, pushing the S&P 500 to its highest level in two months. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 320.55 points, or 1.87 per cent, to 17,489.16, the S&P 500 gained 33.57 points, or 1.66 per cent, to 2,052.51 and the Nasdaq Composite [...]
Eurozone bond yields sink to four-month lows on dovish Draghi comments October 22, 2015 Government borrowing costs dropped across the Eurozone and the euro tumbled today as European Central Bank (ECB) boss Mario Draghi gave his biggest hint yet that the bank would take further steps to boost the lacklustre economy. The euro tanked – it could buy 73.4p this morning but has dropped nearly two per cent to a value of 72.2p. [...]
Eurozone consumer confidence is coming off the boil October 22, 2015 Consumer confidence in the Eurozone edged further down this month, according to survey figures released today by the European Commission (EC). The EC's monthly barometer of consumer confidence slipped 0.6 points to a "flash" score of minus 7.7. Flash scores are estimates made before all the data has been collated. Despite the drop, confidence levels remain high compared with [...]
European Central Bank to re-examine monetary stimulus in December as it holds key interest rates October 22, 2015 The euro tumbled against the pound this afternoon, after European Central Bank (ECB) boss Mario Draghi hinted an even bigger "bazooka" could be fired at the Eurozone in December. In his opening remarks, Draghi reiterated that the emerging market slowdown and financial market turbulence pose downside risks to the outlook for growth and inflation in the Eurozone. "Most notably, the strength and [...]
Sense of deja vu engulfs Barclays boardroom over ringfencing waiver October 22, 2015 When George Santayana uttered his famous quote about people who fail to learn from history being doomed to repeat it, he wasn’t thinking about Britain’s banks. Shame: his words might echo pretty loudly around Barclays’ boardroom right now. Little more than three years after the bank’s chief executive fell on his sword and its chairman made way [...]
Senior managers live longer than “routine” workers: How the career you choose will dictate your life expectancy October 22, 2015 They say money can't buy happiness – but it turns out it can buy health, after new research came out showing that the more "successful" your career is considered to be, the longer your life expectancy is. Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) found those whose job titles were defined as "higher managerial and [...]
London mayor Boris Johnson unveils plans to build 200,000 homes as part of his “city in the East” October 22, 2015 London Mayor Boris Johnson wants to expand the capital eastwards by building more than 200,000 homes, after new research showed the area's building potential is actually four times greater than previously thought. Johnson's "City in the East" plan, launched today, stretches from from London Bridge to the Isle of Dogs and Greenwich Peninsula, through to Ilford in Essex and Dartford [...]
Foxtons says London property transactions at “historically low levels” October 22, 2015 Upmarket estate agents Foxtons has said strong house price growth and stamp duty charges mean the capital's property transactions remain stuck at "historically low levels", pushing its focus towards outer London. Foxtons has opened seven new branches in the last year, most recently in high growth, outer London areas. "We are in a strong position to capitalise on market growth [...]
Iron ore prices fall to three-month low October 22, 2015 Iron ore prices fell to the lowest level since July, amid a supply glut and crumbling global demand, particularly from its biggest consumer China. Benchmark 62-per cent grade iron ore for delivery to China's Tianjin port fell 0.8 per cent to $52.10 a tonne on Tuesday, according to The Steel Index. That was its lowest since [...]
Rate of global M&A slowest for three years thanks to Fed uncertainty and China October 22, 2015 Global M&A will slow over the next six months as interest rate uncertainty and the global slow-down led by China erodes business confidence. 2015 is on track to be a record year for M&A, according to a forecast from Intralinks, but the number of early-stage deals being prepared is slowing. Globally, there is likely to [...]
