Business Comment
Hamish McRae: Celebrate Europe's return to growth. Then prepare to face the next crisis
Phew! Europe is growing again. Yes, I know that according to the official statistics the UK is not yet part of that growth but the more I look at the other data the more convinced I am that our stats are wrong and that eventually it will be shown that some growth began in Britain in the third quarter. But we will see. The more important point is that most of the economies of this time zone are moving forward again. That gives a base from which to think about the coming months. What have we learnt and what should we look for?
Inside Business Comment
Margareta Pagano: It's been a long haul for BA and Iberia, but now they must avoid a crash landing at the altar
Sunday, 15 November 2009
Before the Anglo-Spanish wedding, Walsh faces a £3bn-plus pension deficit, hostile unions and a quandary – what will the new airline be like?
Hamish McRae: Our high-end industries need a more sympathetic civil service
Sunday, 15 November 2009
If, as most people now accept, the next government – which will inherit the gravest fiscal position of any government since 1945 – will have to be more enabling and regulating, rather than taxing 'n' spending, it will need new skills. But aside from "more responsive" and "more efficient" mantras, what are they?
Stephen Foley: America on bailout red alert again
Saturday, 14 November 2009
US Outlook The US is back on Bailout Red Alert, and this time round the federal government looks like it might have to pay to bail out – itself. No one should be surprised to learn that the Federal Housing Administration has found itself facing big losses, what with so many Americans failing to pay their mortgage. Republican politicians scent a scandal of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac proportions, and are already making hay, but this is no time for the Obama administration to go defensive about its support for the US housing market.
Stephen Foley: Can Hefner bear to part with Playboy?
Saturday, 14 November 2009
US Outlook Someone needs to persuade Hugh Hefner to hang up his dressing gown. The 83-year-old founder of Playboy magazine is in talks about selling his company, according to rumours swirling on the New York Stock Exchange, but it remains uncertain if the old lech can bear to part with it.
Howard Wheeldon: Why this is the best deal for investors
Saturday, 14 November 2009
There is no reason why investors should not welcome the prospect of a merger between British Airways and Iberia. This is far more about revenue and profit enhancement than it is about cost savings.
David Prosser: BT to reverse the pension charges
Friday, 13 November 2009
Outlook Not a bad day for Ian Livingston, CEO at BT. His elevation to the top job at the telecoms giant in June 2008 was something of a hospital pass: within months he had to issue a shock profits warning after a disastrous performance from BT's Global Services division, and a series of other problems also loomed large. But yesterday's trading update, however, suggests Mr Livingston's hard-nosed approach is beginning to have an impact.
Hamish McRae: A world that is now divided into the haves and the have-debts
Friday, 13 November 2009
Economic Life: The sorting out that results from the debt load has hardly begun and will be a lasting legacy of this cycle.
David Prosser: BA can no longer fly solo
Friday, 13 November 2009
Outlook It has been two years in the making, but the British Airways merger with Iberia finally seems to have been cleared for take-off. Thank goodness for that. After a disastrous year, BA is in desperate need of some good news – the £500m of annual cost savings that analysts believe the Iberia deal could deliver certainly fit the bill.
David Prosser: Cricket facing a vicious bouncer
Friday, 13 November 2009
Outlook Leaving aside the politics of today's expected announcement from the Government review of sports broadcasting – though the conspiracy theories are great fun – insisting that the Ashes must return to terrestrial television won't do cricket too many favours. Sky paid getting on for £300m to secure exclusive rights to the series just gone, plus the 2010-11 and 2013 Ashes. No terrestrial broadcaster will pay anything like that for the 2015-16 series, when the new rules are likely to come into force.
David Prosser: Time running out for stamp duty saving
Thursday, 12 November 2009
Outlook The recovery of the UK housing market has never looked sustainable and the latest lending figures suggest it may already be beginning to run out of steam. The number of mortgages for house purchase agreed in September was only marginally higher than in August, The Council of Mortgage Lenders reports, and lower than July's figure. And while we're still up significantly on the same months of last year, the low base makes the comparisons pretty meaningless.
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Columnist Comments
• John Rentoul: Labour must read the Tories' book
Four unsuitable leaders cost the Conservatives power. Gordon Brown should take note and act fast
• Rupert Cornwell: Obama will be on trial with 9/11 accused
President's decision could rebound. US courts are not used to defendants who've been tortured
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