The poisoned chalice, the 6p hike in income tax, and the way out of trouble
30 Apr 2010 [1 Comment | 721 views]
The governor of the Bank of England has said that the UK economy is in such a state that whoever wins the next election will be condemned to electoral defeat for a generation – allegedly. The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) has said that in order to grapple with the fiscal deficit, [...]
Obama wins round one as resistance to financial reform wilts on Goldman suit
29 Apr 2010 [0 Comments | 428 views]
What’s really going on with Goldman Sachs and its law suit? The bank has been shaken to its core, and yet, were its practices really illegal? – that seems dubious. Maybe what we are really seeing is something quite different and much more far reaching. Maybe what we are really seeing is the build up [...]
Will Greek contagion spread to UK?
29 Apr 2010 [0 Comments | 685 views]
Will Greek contagion spread to UK? The crises has been compared to Ebola. One guru said Greece is tip of iceberg. And warned the UK could follow Whilst Gordon Brown was busy destroying his electoral hopes yesterday, turning a successful chat with a member of the public into a disaster, a real disaster was unfolding [...]
Greek contagion – is it Lehman Brothers 2?
28 Apr 2010 [3 Comments | 1,069 views]
Greek debt is relegated to junk status. Portugal sees its credit rating downgraded. Shares across the world fall. All that glistens is gold. Where will it all end? Is it Lehman Brothers all over again? “Liquidate labor, liquidate stocks, liquidate farmers, liquidate real estate… it will purge the rottenness out of the system. High costs [...]
Entrepreneurs cheer up
27 Apr 2010 [0 Comments | 398 views]
Hope comes out of the woodwork, and comes courtesy of entrepreneurs. So suggests a new report from Hiscox, entitled: DNA of an entrepreneur. For once it is good news, and points to an economic revival driven by entrepreneurs. The study was carried out in the UK, Germany, France and the Netherlands. Curiously, when asked if [...]
Regulator declares cultural war against Wall Street
27 Apr 2010 [0 Comments | 395 views]
Was it simply perverse? Investment banks were designing bonds especially, or so it appears, for the purpose of betting against them. Has Wall Street evolved to such a level that its interests are now diametrically opposed to the interests of the rest of the economy? One famous guru reckons this is precisely what has happened. [...]
The cost of hung parliament
26 Apr 2010 [0 Comments | 511 views]
Will a hung parliament really be economic disaster? The press is full of scare stories about how a hung parliament will cost us dear. The Telegraph in its normal, balanced fashion told us a hung parliament will cost households £5,000, because the result of a three-way vote will be markets taking fright, forcing interest rates [...]
Spring is in the air, but don’t believe the green shoots
26 Apr 2010 [2 Comments | 683 views]
Goldman Sachs strikes back; IMF paratroopers bail out over Greece; the media celebrate soaring house prices; and also tell us the UK has avoided a double dip recession. The four big stories of the weekend are related. This is what happened, and why a lot of hogwash has been pouring forth. That great barometer of [...]
ONS could influence the election with irrelevant data
23 Apr 2010 [0 Comments | 375 views]
The first estimate of GDP in Q1 was released this morning; it was disappointing, and could have a big impact on the election. It is a shame – the data is almost certainly wrong and way too pessimistic. Three months ago, the ONS released its first estimate of GDP for the final quarter of last [...]
Greece comes a-cropper-olis
23 Apr 2010 [2 Comments | 807 views]
Uh oh. News on Greek debt went from bad, to worse, to really bad yesterday. Will the UK follow suit? The bad news was supplied by those tiresome statisticians Eurostat, which only came along and revised its figures for Greece’s fiscal deficit for 2009 from 12.7 to 13.6 per cent of GDP. And then, to [...]
