Eurozone: ECB said to have discussed €500bn quantitative easing programme January 9, 2015 European Central Bank (ECB) officials are said to have discussed a €500bn quantitative easing programme, which many hope will rescue the embattled Eurozone from its economic quagmire. If the programme is launched, it will involve the central bank buying up government debt rated BBB- or higher. Purchasing only investment-grade debt minimises the bank's exposure to [...]
Labour shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna calls for inquiry into collapse of City Link January 9, 2015 Labour's shadow business secretary has urged the government to initiate an inquiry into the controversial collapse of delivery giant City Link. Chuka Umunna piled pressure on the government, asking for a "full and proper inquiry" and adding "those who have lost their jobs and contractors who are owed money deserve nothing less". Business secretary Vince [...]
Tesco share price rallies as chief Dave Lewis wins over City funds, but Moody’s issues junk rating January 8, 2015 Tesco boss Dave Lewis won the cautious backing of stock-pickers yesterday as he unveiled radical plans to cut hundreds of millions of pounds worth of costs in a bid to revive the fortunes of the troubled supermarket. Shares rallied 15 per cent, marking their biggest one-day gain in six years. Yet lenders to the retail [...]
Cameron: I won’t join TV debates without Greens January 8, 2015 DAVID Cameron has drawn a firm line in the sand over the proposed TV election debates, vowing not to take part unless the Green party is invited too. The Prime Minister’s tough stance on the issue came after regulator Ofcom published provisional guidance suggesting that the Green party has not secured enough support in previous [...]
Tesco boss Dave Lewis: Drastic he may be but let’s not forget dapper January 8, 2015 Drastic Dave Lewis had his day in the spotlight yesterday, reeling off a list of admittedly quite drastic measures in a bid to save Tesco. But the one question The Capitalist wanted to ask was, how does Tesco boss Drastic Dave Lewis feel about constantly being called drastic? Maybe one day he’d like to be [...]
General Election 2015: Miliband, Farage and Clegg accuse Cameron of “running scared” from televised leader debates after refusing to appear without Green Party January 8, 2015 Rival political parties have accused David Cameron of “running scared” from the televised debates ahead of the General Election, after he said he wouldn't take part in them unless the Green Party were also included. The Prime Minister made the comments after draft guidelines were made by Ofcom about who should appear. The report said [...]
Tesco turnaround: Dave Lewis says “We are facing the reality of the situation”. Here’s his statement in full January 8, 2015 Tesco's share price has risen 11.2 per cent today, after revealing better than expected results, a detailed turnaround strategy and the name of its new UK and Ireland boss, Halford's Matt Davies, who joins in June. Chief executive Dave Lewis has gone through a baptism of fire in his first few months at the [...]
Mike Ashley’s USC goes into administration with hundreds of jobs at risk January 8, 2015 Hundreds of jobs could be lost at Mike Ashley's fashion chain USC after filing a notice of the intention to appoint receivers at the High Court yesterday. A third of USC's 90 stores, which are believed to employ 1,000 staff are set to close. On Wednesday morning, dozens of staff at the USC warehouse in [...]
Eurozone enters deflation giving Draghi upper hand January 7, 2015 THE EUROZONE has slipped into deflation as prices fell by 0.2 per cent year-on-year in December. It marks a significant fall from November when prices rose by 0.3 per cent, according to Europe’s official statistical office Eurostat. Economists have raised their expectations that the European Central Bank (ECB) will begin a large programme of asset [...]
After talks with Angela Merkel, is David Cameron’s quest for EU renegotiation doomed to failure? January 7, 2015 Ruth Lea is economic adviser to the Arbuthnot Banking Group, says Yes Very little was expected from Chancellor Angela Merkel’s latest visit. But putting that aside, there have to be major doubts that any renegotiation of the terms of the UK’s EU membership would amount to much, however badly some of us would like to [...]
