News - Industry
Categories: Industry
Pimco, the world's largest bond fund, has called on Greece, Ireland and Portugal to step outside the eurozone temporarily and restructure their debts unless the currency bloc agrees to a radical change of course.
Andrew Bosomworth, head of Pimco's portfolio management in Europe, said current policies are untenable in the absence of fiscal union and will lead to a break-up of the euro.
"Greece, Ireland and Portugal cannot get back on their feet without either their own currency or large transfer payments," he told German newspaper Die Welt.
He said these countries could rejoin EMU "after an appropriate debt restructuring", adding that devaluation would let them export their way back to health.
More than half of Gartmore's 350 staff are set to lose their jobs if the cut-price takeover by Henderson Group goes ahead, according to the Daily Mail.
Investors will also be left out in the cold this Christmas - a 95p a share offer is likely to be the best they can get and even this price could be ratcheted downwards.
Gartmore, which floated in December 2009 for 220p a share, is desperately trying to sew up a deal with Henderson before the festive holiday. FULL STORY...
An extra £4bn could have been extracted from the bailed out banks for their use of the government's toxic loans insurance scheme, the spending watchdog will say today.
The National Audit Office says that ministers failed to conduct the necessary "breadth and depth of analysis" on the banks.
The watchdog's report also finds the asset protection scheme did not go far enough to achieve its goal of bolstering lending to businesses but concedes it was successful in allowing the Treasury to maintain financial stability, reports the Guardian.
The APS was originally intended as a backstop for troubled loans by Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Banking Group. When it was finally announced in the autumn of 2009 only RBS participated.
Lloyds paid £2.5bn to exit the scheme but the NAO reckoned it could have been required to pay between £3bn and £4.5bn for the insurance it received before conducting a cash call on shareholders that allowed it to survive without extra government assistance.
RBS will face a bill of £2.5bn when it exits although the NAO calculated this could have been set as high as £4.4bn.
Comments
Lesson will never be learnt
Are the people responsible still in their jobs? Or is this yet another Government Agency declaring that following investigation lesson will be learnt.
The sum involved would bankrupt most industries let alone, individual private companies.
Unless those responsible pay the price with their jobs, expect more of the same.
Is the answer to be found in fraud, negligence,incompetence or simply absence of necessary skills.
Posted by: M J Winfield
21 Dec 2010 | 11:37
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Politicians Love Bankers
It is no surprise to me that the banks benefited from a cut price deal (at the expense of the taxpayer) on the toxic asset insurance scheme as the British State has had a love affair with bankers since the State got into bed with the private banks in 1694 when the Bank of England was founded, and the evil marriage settlement that is fractional reserve banking system was made legal.
Politicians may try to give the impression to electorate that they are angry with bankers for destroying our economy and stealing our wealth but under the surface the bond of love is as strong as ever.
Politicians have the power to end the vice like grip that the private banks have over our economic life, but even now, when the evidence of how harmful fractional reserve banking is so strong, our political leaders still bow down and kiss the hand that feeds them.
Never was a divorce so much in the public interest as it is today.
Posted by: Kim Andrew Lincoln
21 Dec 2010 | 11:24
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