Global inflation and rate of interest watch.
31 Jan 2007 [0 Comments | 56 views]
Many feared that Germany was about to catch the inflation habit. A recent hike in VAT meant prices would necessarily go up, and many feared the worse. The latest data, however, has calmed nerves. Sure, the German HCPI rate for January has been estimated at 1.7 percent, and that’s up on last month, but then [...]
Oil rises as temperatures fall
31 Jan 2007 [0 Comments | 59 views]
Those amazing traders in oil, their spending: it goes downdity down, and then uppity up. Oil climbed again yesterday to $56.59. It’s now $6 up on the price it fell to just over a week ago. Oil had fallen to the lowest level in over 20 months, but now it’s close to the levels seen [...]
Tata shows its Indian metal as it clinches Corus deal
31 Jan 2007 [0 Comments | 40 views]
It’s been a game of bid and counter bid, but at last it would seem Corus’s fate has been sealed. When India’s Tata Steel first offered to buy Corus, the price on the table was £4.1 billion, and some worried the Indian company couldn’t really afford the price tag – that it would need to [...]
House prices: the bears claw their way back
31 Jan 2007 [0 Comments | 71 views]
Did you know that if you were to lay all the property market economists end to end, they would form a wall big enough to see from outer-space – at least it feels that way. As for surveys, not only do we seem to be brimming over with them at present, there seem to be [...]
Money for DIY video publishing: YouTube opens up commercial net to everyone
30 Jan 2007 [0 Comments | 43 views]
It’s not a unique idea, the web site Revver, for example, is already doing it but YouTube’s latest plan could revolutionise the media industry. On the other hand, since the company has only managed modest revenues to date, it may all prove something of a damp squid. Traditional media companies may look at YouTube, and [...]
Global economy set to continue good run
30 Jan 2007 [0 Comments | 55 views]
The Global economy is set for another two years of brisk growth, while in the US, Japan, the Eurozone and the UK it will all be much of a muchness, with growth in each of the four areas expected to lie between 3 and 2 percent for 2007 and 2008. According to the National Institute [...]
UK set for robust performance, despite predicted rise in jobless
30 Jan 2007 [0 Comments | 54 views]
The number of people unemployed and claiming unemployment benefit is expected to top 1 million this year, says the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR). Despite this rise, the UK is expected to chug along nicely growing at 2.8 percent in 2007, but thanks to the rise in jobless figures, inflation will stay [...]
The High Street is back: retail index sees best performance for three years
30 Jan 2007 [0 Comments | 54 views]
While all around there was hope, the CBI with its distributive trades index stayed glum. In April last year, when the British Retail Consortium said the month saw an impressive 6.8 percent growth on the year before, the CBI index only just managed to rise above zero, hitting a score of just 2 points. Back [...]
Debt companies struggle to sell IVAs
29 Jan 2007 [0 Comments | 62 views]
At first glance it seemed like a cause to celebrate. Debt management companies DFD and Accuma have both issued profit warnings. One would assume that if debt management companies are struggling, less of us are in debt, ergo the biggest threat to continued economic growth has gone away. Alas, on this occasion, the good news, [...]
And UK companies make shed loads more cash
29 Jan 2007 [0 Comments | 98 views]
Talking of cash, KPMG has published a report saying that FTSE 350 companies will generate close to a staggering £200 billion in cash over the next three years. KPMG reckons oil, gas and mining companies will be the big cash generators. But a question mark hangs over the business air. What will all this cash [...]
