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Hamish McRae: Quietly optimistic about growth, in spite of the IMF

Economic View: Let's not get excited, but if the big three keep on bringing in the bacon, the Government will be able to get the deficit down

Hamish McRae: Should Italy push for more fiscal prudence in this age of austerity?

It is a funny time in Italy. On paper the country's economy has now shrunk for seven consecutive quarters, making it the longest recession since the Second World War, and leaving it some 8 per cent below the peak reached in 2007.

Hamish McRae: Share price increase shows Lloyds Bank is healing – but only just

So the share price of Lloyds Bank has just about squeaked above the level where the taxpayers start to make a profit on our involuntary investment.

Hamish McRae: Britain up, eurozone down - for once, the Bank is right

Economic View: The markets conclude that this news is so bad the ECB will have to find ways of injecting new demand into the eurozone

Hamish McRae: Why Europe needs to communicate more on communications

Preserving Britain's access to the European Single Market is cited as one of the main reasons for continued membership of the EU – the single market essentially being the market for services, which has developed much more recently than the single market for goods.

Hamish McRae: Booming equity markets can feed back into growth

Economic View: If a company's share price is strong it has options: it does not have to rely on recalcitrant banks for a loan

Hamish McRae: Markets keep on climbing but there's still reason to be cautious about recovery

Economic View: Confidence is an odd thing. Share prices are as much a measure of confidence as a driver of it

Hamish McRae: Wanted - Confidence booster from ECB

Economic View

Hamish McRae: Need a valuable handle on investor sentiment? Google it

Anyone seeking a magic formula for stock market investment will be intrigued by the study in Nature Publishing's Scientific Reports by three academics, Tobias Preis, of Warwick Business School, Helen Susannah Moat, of University College London, and H Eugene Stanley, of Boston University.

Hamish McRae: Why shares thrive while the economy flounders

Economic View: Apply the buy/sell rule to equities over the past 40 years and you would have spent 2000 to 2008 outside the market

Hamish McRae: What hope if Germany is floundering?

Economic View

Hamish McRae: We're buying new cars, but still wary of other big-ticket spending

There will be a lot of attention in the coming weeks to what the new Governor of the Bank of England will or won't do, and there is a danger that expectations will be too high – not so much of him but of the role of central banks in an advanced economy.

Hamish McRae: Leaders must admit failure before Europe can recover

Economic View: If the German economy were to falter, we would have the makings of a catastrophe on our doorstep

Hamish McRae: Banks' misdeeds allow us to scrap our old bangers

One of the puzzles of the past year is how British consumers have managed to keep increasing their spending despite the continuing squeeze on their incomes and without further running down savings – rather the reverse.

Day In a Page

Johnny Marr talks relationships and reunions

He's worked with Modest Mouse, the Pet Shop Boys and Beck, to name a few, and recently released his first solo album. So why, wonders Johnny Marr, do people still hark on about The Smiths?
After the flood: From Haiti to Britain, one man has captured the devastation of our increasingly deluged lands

In pictures: After the flood

From Haiti to Britain, one man has captured the devastation of our increasingly deluged lands
Death becomes her: Meet the very modern mortician who champions 'cool' funerals

Death becomes her: A very modern mortician

Ever considered baking a loved one's remains into a cake or putting their ashes in fireworks? If so, talk to Caitlin Doughty, champion of the alternative death industry.
How long can the 'Keep Calm' trend carry on?

How long can the 'Keep Calm' trend carry on?

At first it seemed clever and cute. Then the 'Keep Calm' motif went mad, spawning endless offshoots.
The man who built Brum: A lament for the demise of John Madin's Brutalist Birmingham

John Madin: The man who built Brum

The architect's buildings were supposed to leave an indelible, futuristic mark on his beloved hometown but they are now being inexorably torn down.
School of chop: Learning the art of butchery at the Ginger Pig

School of chop: Learning the art of butchery

How do you butcher a lamb? Or make Mexican street food in a British kitchen? Christopher Hirst finds out.
James Pembroke: The man who's eaten everywhere

The man who's eaten everywhere

Few people know more about restaurants than James Pembroke, who only spent five mealtimes at home during his entire childhood.
A Berliner in 1963 – but did John F Kennedy once admire Adolf Hitler?

A Berliner in 1963 – but did John F Kennedy once admire Adolf Hitler?

The young JFK praised 'superior' Nordic races during visits to Germany
Banned Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof to attend Cannes Film Festival 2013, his first public appearance since prison

Banned Iranian director to attend Cannes Film Festival

Mohammad Rasoulof to make his first public appearance since being imprisoned three years ago
Seeing the larger picture: Inspiring images of space

Seeing the larger picture: Inspiring images of space

An exhibition explores images how photography has shaped astronomy
Eat Spam and carry on: Wartime pamphlets could teach us a thing or two about healthy, thrifty eating

Eat Spam and carry on

Wartime pamphlets could teach us a thing or two about healthy, thrifty eating
Facial hair: Cat beards and the purrrsuit of excellence

Facial hair

Cat beards and the purrrsuit of excellence
The 10 Best salt and pepper sets

The 10 Best salt and pepper sets

Whether they're for everyday use or to make your dining table look just right, it's worth getting a stylish shaker...
Ferran Soriano: Predicting success if Manchester City 'vision' is followed

Ferran Soriano: Predicting success if Manchester City 'vision' is followed

Chief executive says trophies will come if a 'core' of suitable players is in place
Thomas Müller: We couldn't handle losing a Champions League Final again

Thomas Müller: We couldn't handle losing a Champions League Final again

The Bayern Munich forward tells Tim Rich his side have to shed chokers' tag after two recent final defeats