Author Archive: Jeremy Parkinson
Obama tries to woo business, slams ‘burdensome’ tax
President Barack Obama stepped up efforts to woo the US business community on February 7, seeking its help to tackle “burdensome” corporate taxes in a speech to a business group that has long been a fierce critic. Obama, on a drive to win over business and independent voters before the 2012 presidential election, also repeated […]
Rein: EU should follow Germany’s lead on reforms
European countries must implement the structural reforms that Germany has already carried out over the last couple of decades to ramp up competitiveness, the European Union’s top economic official said recently. Economics and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn said Germany’s economy entered the crisis on a stronger footing than others within the EU because it […]
Egypt has limited war chest to avert financial crisis
Egypt has substantial reserves to avoid an external payments crisis but these could be seriously depleted within weeks if political protests continue, while its banks may struggle to cope with a rush of withdrawals. In the days after the protests erupted, Egyptians and foreign investors transferred hundreds of millions of dollars out of Egypt, currency […]
M&A is back as CEOs start to put cash to work
Dealmaking is back on the agenda as CEOs step up the hunt for ways to put a multitrillion-dollar cash pile to work, triggering the busiest January for M&A in 11 years. There is still plenty to worry about at this year’s meeting of the global elite in Davos, from fiscal deficits in the developed world […]
UK inflation leaps to eight month high, pressure on BoE
A record monthly jump in prices drove British inflation to an eight-month high in December, piling pressure on the Bank of England to raise interest rates and show it is not letting inflation get out of control. The Office for National Statistics said the annual rate of consumer price inflation rose to 3.7 percent from […]
Henderson bags Gartmore, makes $122bn funds firm
Anglo-Australian funds house Henderson is buying troubled British rival Gartmore, to create one of Britain’s largest retail asset managers with £78bn ($122bn) under management. “By bringing across fund managers and integrating the (Gartmore) business onto our own platform we will be able to enhance margins significantly,” Henderson chief executive Andrew Formica said. “Its recent travails […]
Renault spy case shows rising economic conflict
From what France calls “economic warfare” as it probes a Chinese link to industrial espionage at Renault to currency confrontation and commodity rivalry, economic conflict is increasingly impacting businesses. President Nicolas Sarkozy’s office has asked French intelligence to probe suspected industrial espionage at the car giant. Renault suspended three executives at the start of January […]
Mobilising impact finance
World population is estimated at 6.8 billion people, of which close to two billion live in poverty, 925 million are undernourished, 2.6 billion lack basic sanitation, about one billion can’t read a book or sign their name and 443 million school days are lost each year due to water-related illnesses. Yes, the percentage of population […]
Good things come to those who wait
After the United States, China is the second largest economy in the world. It has long been recognised as the fastest-growing globally, having recorded annual average growth rates in excess of 10 percent over the last quarter-century. In Q2 2010, China’s economy was valued at $1.33trn, and it is estimated that by the end of […]
A civil engineer for all seasons
Prasert BunsumpunAge: 58Education:Harvard Business SchoolMBA, Utah State UniversityCareer highlights:2003 President and CEO, PTT Group2001-2003 Senior Executive Vice President, Gas Business Group, PTT Public Company When Prasert Bunsumpun, then 51, was appointed President of Thailand’s national energy company, PTT Plc in 2003 it was yet to join the ranks of the Fortune 500 elite. By 2004, […]
