Wall Street tumbles on banking reform despair May 20, 2010 US stocks sank nearly four per cent yesterday on growing fears the Eurozone’s efforts to tackle its sovereign debt crisis will fall short, jeopardizing the global economic recovery. Selling picked up speed late in the day and indexes closed around their session lows after the US Senate voted to end debate on the sweeping overhaul [...]
Make sure you use all of your options when it comes to pensions May 20, 2010 THE long-standing debate over whether those planning for retirement should pay as much as they can into their pension or make the most of their Isa allowance has taken on more significance of late due to changes that will affect both of the savings vehicles. Pensions are changing and higher earners will probably no longer [...]
A champion of British grub May 20, 2010 FOUNDING a restaurant would test the nerves of even the most hardened entrepreneur. Ensuring the food and décor are both delicious and attractive is one thing, but in London a new restaurant can sink or swim based on a review. Iqbal Wahhab, founder of Borough Market’s Roast, which opened in October 2005, swam, but not [...]
When you just can’t let go of your business May 20, 2010 ALL is not well at low cost airline easyJet. Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, its flamboyant founder, dramatically resigned from the board last Friday after clashing with the management team over its expansion plans. In the latest instalment of the saga, Haji-Ioannou, who floated the company in 2000 and now owns 38 per cent, has issued the [...]
Q&A: PAYE May 20, 2010 Q. I have recently started my business and I am in the process of hiring staff, what should I know about PAYE? A. Pay As You Earn (PAYE) is the way that HMRC collects income tax and national insurance. As an employer once you start hiring people you have a legal obligation to collect PAYE [...]
FTSE hit by German ban on shorting May 19, 2010 BRITAIN’S top shares fell steeply yesterday, as commodity-linked stocks and banks were hit by Germany’s attempt to stop speculators driving down the euro, bonds and share prices by limiting short-selling. The FTSE 100 closed down 149.26 points, or 2.8 per cent, at 5,158.08, having added 0.9 per cent on Tuesday, as Germany’s move shook markets [...]
Fears over Eurozone debt rock US May 19, 2010 US stocks fell yesterday as Germany’s unilateral action to ban specific trades on some stocks and bonds sparked a fresh wave of uncertainty and risk aversion among anxious investors. Markets already fear the Eurozone’s credit woes could cut into economic growth. But not all the news was bad, as the broad S&P 500 bounced off [...]
There is value to be found in private equity May 19, 2010 AFTER two years in the investment wilderness listed private equity companies have emerged fresher, leaner, less debt-ridden and ripe to outperform the overall stock market, according to some analysts. Traditionally private equity houses tend to be a good play on a cyclical economic recovery. Their share prices should rise when their portfolio companies start to [...]
The heat is on for the steel price this year May 19, 2010 THE price of industrial metals has been hit during the recent bout of market turbulence. But against this backdrop pressures have been building that could drive the price of steel higher again. The industrial metal, widely used for the production of infrastructure, is being bolstered by several factors. The first is supply and demand. Supply [...]
THE TIPSTER May 19, 2010 THE airline that once billed itself as the world’s favourite is set to report fourth quarter results on Friday, but it has hardly been an upbeat few months for British Airways. Although these profit figures will not include the disruption caused by the volcano in Iceland, the carrier has been mired in an industrial dispute [...]
