Posts Tagged ‘expectations’
RBS posts £3.6bn annual loss
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), which is 84% state-owned, has today posted a full-year loss of £3.6 billion.
RBS is the second major UK bank to report its 2009 results. Last week, Barclays announced record profits of more than £11 billion – a 92% rise on the previous year.
However, RBS’ loss is not as bad as [...]
Hong Kong’s economic growth beats expectations in Q4
Hong Kong’s economy expanded by 2.3% quarter-on-quarter in the final three months of 2009 – beating analysts expectations.
The figures are further proof that Asia is leading the global recovery and come just a few days after figures showed Taiwan’s economy grew at an annualised rate of 18% in the final quarter of 2009.
Meanwhile, the economy [...]
US consumer prices up 0.2% in January
Official data has revealed US consumer prices rose by a slower-than-expected 0.2% in January.
On an annual basis, prices were up 2.6% – also below expectations.
The increase was the result of a hike in energy prices, which rose for the ninth month in a row. Over the last year, energy prices have soared 19.1%, said [...]
UK retail sales slip due to January snowfall
As expected, the snowy and icy conditions experienced in the UK in January has resulted in a fall in retail sales.
The severe wintry weather drove shoppers away from the High Street and resulted in a 1.8% fall in retail sales – the sharpest drop in 18 months.
The official figures, from the Office for National Statistics, [...]
Japanese economy expands 1.1% in Q4
The Japanese economy grew at a better than expected 1.1% in the last three months of 2009, meaning it retains its status as the world’s second largest economy.
Meanwhile, official figures show that GDP grew at an annualised pace of 4.6% in the fourth quarter of 2009, cementing a strong recovery from its worst recession in [...]