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UK retail sales fell 0.4% on a like-for-like year-on-year basis in February, versus a 2.3% increase in January as sales for non-food items slowed sharply due to uncertainty about jobs and incomes, according to the British Retail Consortium-KPMG’s monthly sales monitor. Total sales rose 1.1% on a year ago in February, against January’s increase of [...]
LONDON is rebounding from the UK’s housing market slump, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) revealed today. While house prices continued to fall throughout the rest of the country, prices actually rose in the capital in February, according to the latest RICS survey. A positive balance of 14 per cent of surveyors reported jumps [...]
China’s Commerce Minister said Monday the current yuan exchange rate was at a “reasonable range”, amid calls for Beijing to let its currency appreciate rapidly. “The current range is a completely reasonable range acknowledged by the international community,” Chen Deming told reporters at a press briefing during the nation’s annual parliamentary session. “It is completely [...]
US crude oil prices have hit a new two-and-a-half year high amid fears Libya could be facing a full-blown civil war. US light crude rose by $1.95 to $106.75 a barrel, the highest since September 2008, before falling back sharply. Brent crude gained $2.43 to $118.4, close to recent highs, before it also slipped back. [...]
The economy can’t be predicted. The longer I live, the more I believe that’s true. Running the Derby of Economic Forecasting Talent (DEFT for short) reinforces my conviction. I salute the contest’s winners, of course, though certain patterns over the years strengthen my skepticism about successfully predicting economic performance. Amateurs frequently beat professionals. No one [...]
Contracts for difference is essentially a type of trading that allows traders to buy and sell goods without physically owning them. Under a CFD agreement, the seller agrees to buy an asset provided that the difference between the current value of the asset and its value during contract time is positive. If the difference is [...]
When the whole WikiLeaks controversy started to hit the newswires weeks ago I had many conflicting attitudes. I must say I was curious to see what kind of information might actually be leaked, and what may or may not be true. It seems we continue to receive bits of information that hits the newswires over [...]
When someone mentions needing leverage, what comes to mind? Being that I work in the oilfield, the first thing that I think of is a cheater pipe. This is a tool that is placed on the end of a pipe wrench used to provide additional leverage. The leverage comes in the form of additional force [...]
Savings account is a strong means in handling your money. Sparing in the deposit is a great habit if you are saving money. It is the safest area for the funds you are saving. With savings account, you may also earn interest from the main money you deposited. It is the goal why it is [...]
Those who play the financial markets are only there for one reason: to make money. So an absolute return sounds pretty excellent…or does it? The term seems fairly straightforward: invest some money, absolutely get an absolute return. For that reason, the absolute return mutual funds markets are growing, but the case may stand that traditional [...]