US Secretary of State warns of “appropriate action” over measures
The US has rejected new EU plans to issue an emissions tax on airlines, saying such rulings must go through the international aviation body. The statement is an attempt to block European Union plans to charge airlines for carbon emissions created by flights to and from all 27 EU countries from 1 January. Green initiatives [...]
Both the currency and main stock index for South Korea have dropped after the news that North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-il had died. The Bank of Korea is set to hold an emergency meeting to discuss the death and the possible upheaval in the country that could follow. Succession plans Questions about who will succeed [...]
December saw UK consumer morale hit its lowest in almost three years, according to a recent survey from researchers GfK NOP. The researchers found that British households had become more pessimistic about their prospects in the coming year, showing a drop in the consumer confidence index from November’s -33 to -31. Scrooge-ish visions “Optimism has [...]
Chelsea and England captain John Terry is facing allegations of racial abuse of Anton Ferdinand, a defender for Queens Park Rangers. The abuse happened at a Premiere Leage match in October, British authorities have informed the media on Wednesday. Court date The beautiful game is no stranger to racism charges, as Terry’s prosecution announcement comes [...]
A recent poll of analysts has found that most experts expect house prices to fall modestly next year on the back of the slumping economy and eurozone uncertainty. However, experts warn that this could modest drop could prove overly optimistic if the eurozone crisis worsen even slightly. Growth prospects This outlook is consistent with the [...]
A government adviser has said that the low-carbon goals for the energy sector in Britain could push energy bills up by 10% by 2020. Experts warn that these cost to homeowners can be cut if they partake in greener energy use themselves, by using heating controls and more efficient lighting. Large applicances, such as washing [...]
523 banks borrowed money after the European Central Bank announced that it would issue loans for lending institutions to shore up their finances. The ECB offered banks a way to shore up their capital in its first ever three-year loan offers, meant to avoid another credit crunch in the New Year. The central bank also [...]
Investigators raided the office buildings of three small Olympus Corp subsidiaries on Wednesday. These were among the 20 sites searched for investigations in a £1.1 billion accounting scandal. The scandal over mis-kept books could bring down the 92-year-old, successful camera medical device makers. Run for cover It seemed that not even the homes of Olympus [...]
The European Commission has announced a plan to stem the tide of growing youth employment plaguing the European Union. The programme will help out of work youth throughout all 27 EU member states. YOI The new programme to keep young adults off of jobless benefits has been named the Youth Operatives Initiative (YOI) and is [...]
The economic policymakers at the Bank of England had left open the possibility of an additional round of quantitative easing (QE) in February. The QE measures involve printing and injecting cash into the faltering British economy in hopes of kickstarting growth. The poor growth in the third quarter of 2011 saw the bank add £75 [...]
The foreign minister of Germany has suggested that the country would like to try and ‘build bridges’ with the UK after tensions rose following a summit in Brussels. At the summit, which saw eurozone leaders try to push through economic integration throughout the EU, David Cameron used his veto power to keep the UK out [...]
The president of the European Central Bank (ECB), Mario Draghi, has said that he has “no doubts” of the euro’s ability to withstand the current financial crisis plaguing the eurozone. Rising risks The ECB chief said that he believed of the currency’s “permanence” while speaking to the European Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, [...]
Swedish car company Saab, which has long been troubled financially, has filed for bankruptcy. The move came after the firm was unable to secure fresh funding from potential Chinese investors. GM veto The move to push away further investment followed from the reluctance of General Motors (GM), American car firm. GM felt that the Chinese [...]
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is considered likely to impose stricter rules on mortgage lending by 2013. The new rules are an attempt to keep a resurgence of risky mortgage lending at bay. ‘Excesses’ Chairman of the FSA, Lord Turner, said that the “excesses of the pre-crisis period have largely disappeared from the current market,” [...]
A recent report from KPMG has stated that Western businesses from developed economies are much slower at adopting social networking into their operational model than rivals in developing countries. The use of social media web sites, such as Twitter and Facebook, has altered the way the world shares and consumes information, leaving some Western businesses [...]
The government has announced that savers will be rewarded with money to contribute towards an Individual Savings Account if they invest in initiatives targeted at helping disadvantaged youth. The money can be used towards regular or Junior ISAs, which are the government’s new children’s savings scheme that allows up to £3,600 of yearly tax-free contribution. [...]
