Posted on Wednesday, 20th July 2011 by Emily Smith
Lending may fall short of 140m predictions, says AMI Lending may fall short of the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ (CML) target of £140 million, the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries (AMI) says. Read more…
Tags: 140m Predictions, Ami, May Fall Short, Says Ami
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Posted on Wednesday, 20th July 2011 by Emily Smith
European markets were higher Friday after the European Union agreed on Thursday to a new plan to help debt-plagued Greece.
The FTSE 100 was up 0.6 percent to 5,935.02 in London, while the FTSE 250 added 0.97 percent to 11,820.3 as most primarily saw gains but most homebuilders were lower.
The travel and leisure sector, which only saw three decliners, provided both the biggest gainer and the biggest loser on the 250 as easyJet (LSE: EZJ) added 17.68 to lead winners after it said annual earnings will be better than expected on business bookings that were up 20 percent, but Bwin.party Digital Entertainment (LSE: BPTY) dropped 3.36 percent as the biggest decliner in the sector and on the index.
Other travel-related shares were up, including a gain of 5.88 percent for travel agent Thomas Cook Group (LSE: TCG), while International Consolidated Airlines Group (LSE: IAG) added 2.19 percent.
Gold and silver miner Fresnillo (LSE: FRES) was up 2.25 percent to lead gains on the 100, while drug maker AstraZeneca (LSE: AZN) was the worst performer on the index as it ddropped 1.23 percent.
Banks were mixed as Royal Bank of Scotland Group (LSE: RBS) tied Fresnillo for the top spot on the winners list on the 100 with a gain of 2.25 percent, while Standard Chartered (LSE: STAN) was the worst-performing bank as it droped 0.95 percent.
Aviva (LSE: AV) added 1.29 percent in a mostly higher insurance sector on media reports that Zurich Financial Services (SIX: ZURN) could bid on the insurer.
The chemicals and food and beverage sectors had just one declner each, while all utilities were higher and the media and telecommunications sector each saw just two declines.
The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was up 0.45 percent to 1,108.12 while the IBEX added 0.42 percent to 10,059.3, the Dax was 0.5 percent higher to 7,326.39 and the CAC-40 gained 0.68 percent to 3,842.7.
Markets in Asia and the Pacific region were higher on the news that the European Union has agreed to more aid for Greece and on hopes that an agreement is near on the debt ceiling in the United States.
The Nikkei 225 was up 1.22 percent to 10,132.1 in Tokyo, while the Topix index added 1.01 percent to 868.81 but the Mothers market was 0.61 percent lower to 478.31, with banks helped by the news of the new plan for Greece as Mitsubishi UFJ (TYO: 8306) added 3.3 percent and was helped by a media report that probably saw net income double in the quarter ended in June, while Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (TYO: 8316) was up 3.6 percent.
Medical device manufacturer Terumo Corp (TYO: 4543) was up 1.3 percent on reports that it might have seen record profits in its fiscal first quarter, while exporters were up including an 0.8 percent gain for Toyota Motor (TYO: 7203) while consumer electronics maker Sony (TYO: 6758) was up 1.1 percent and camera and copier maker Canon (TYO: 7751) added 1.3 percent.
The Shanghai Composite was up 0.18 percent to 2,770.79, Taiwans Taiex added 0.55 percent to 8,765.32, Australias markets were higher as the SP/ASX200 added 1.03 percent to 4,602.9 and the Sydney Ordinaries gained 1.04 percent to 4,674.1, the Kospi was up 1.22 percent to 2,171.23 in South Korea, Singapores Straits Times Index added 1.42 percent to 3,182.95, the Sensex was 1.55 percent higher to 18,722.3 in India and Hong Kongs Hang Seng gained 2.08 percent to 22,444.8.
New York equities markets were mixed at just before 1 p.m.
Tags: 18 Percent, Percent
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Posted on Tuesday, 19th July 2011 by Emily Smith
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has today reported a pick up in mortgage lending for the month of June.
According to the Council, gross mortgage lending last month totalled £12.9 billion – this represented a 16% rise on a monthly basis but was 3% lower compared with June 2010.
Meanwhile, the CML said mortgage lending for the first half of 2011 was 2.5% lower when compared with the same period in 2010.
Commenting on the figures, CML’s chief economist Bob Pannell, said: The UK economy continues to experience disappointing economic growth, strong consumer price pressures, falling disposable incomes and an uncertain jobs market.
The uncertainty surrounding the economy, together with the ongoing mortgage rationing, mean the housing market is expected to remain subdued for some time to come.
Tags: Lending, Mortgage Lending
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Posted on Tuesday, 19th July 2011 by Emily Smith
On today’s Planet Money: More on the mountain of dollar coins sitting unused in government vaults.
We talk to self-described ‘travel hackers’ who use frequent-flier mile credit cards to buy dollar coins and pile up miles.
And we learn that the U.S. Mint — just today! — said it would stop letting people use credit cards to buy the coins.
Money quote from the mint:
The Mint has determined that this policy change is prudent due to ongoing activity by individuals purchasing $1 coins with credit cards, accumulating frequent flyer miles, and then returning coins to local banks.
Also on the show: Why Ecuador loves U.S. dollar coins.
Tags: Coins, Dollar Coins
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Posted on Tuesday, 19th July 2011 by Emily Smith
SOCIAL connections help when looking for a job. In America, the slow recovery means firms are less likely to advertise vacancies, and more likely to rely on word of mouth. In Italy, jobseekers with friends in jobs are likely to find employment faster than jobseekers whose friends are unemployed.
The American research comes from Steven Davis, Jason Faberman and John Haltiwanger, who have designed an index for the “recruitment intensity” of hiring companies. Aggressive recruiters advertise positions, interview extensively and make immediate offers. Other firms rely on word of mouth and are less likely to make offers to suitable candidates. In the wake of the recession, the index fell to its lowest in a decade:
It slipped below the levels of the previous recession by early 2007 and has not recovered since. Employers are apparently unwilling to expend time or money to fill vacancies, safe in the knowledge that there is an excess supply of qualified candidates. Thi
Tags: Help, Help Friends
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Posted on Monday, 18th July 2011 by Emily Smith
Red tape ‘barrier to renewable energy projects’ Red tape is causing problems for farmers who want to set up renewable energy projects on their land, with lengthy application processes labelled as “like wading through syrup”, a group has claimed. Read more…
Tags: Energy Projects, Projects, Renewable Energy, Renewable Energy Projects
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