evilbanks.co.uk

The UK looks more like the US than any other European economy (maybe more like the US than any other economy, period). It has:
1. An exceptionally low household savings rate – not far from zero if you exclude savings done by companies on behalf of households when they pump more cash into corporate pension […]

A wave of bad economic figures swamped the government on Thursday, a day after the prime minister and the chancellor insisted the UK economy was fundamentally strong and would “weather” global financial storms.
None of the economic data published contained Christmas cheer for the Treasury. The credit squeeze has contributed to the worst public finance […]

Emergency help for financial markets entered new territory on Monday night as the European Central Bank announced it would on Tuesday offer unlimited funds at below market interest rates in a special operation to head off a year-end liquidity crisis.
The surprise move, which follows last week’s co-ordinated barrage of measures by the world’s central […]

The three most powerful central banks today launched a £50bn effort to stave off a global recession. The move by the Bank of England, the US Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank highlights the dangers posed by the credit crunch.
The action will make mortgages easier to get as it is aimed at ending […]

Major crude producer Iran has completely stopped carrying out its oil transactions in dollars, Oil Minister Gholam Hossein Nozari said on Saturday, labelling the greenback an “unreliable” currency.
“At the moment selling oil in dollars has been completely halted, in line with the policy of selling crude in non-dollar currencies,” Nozari was quoted as saying […]

Central banks sold about 460 tonnes of gold during the latest Central Banks Gold Agreement year that ended on Wednesday, according to data from the industry-backed World Gold Council. This is 16 per cent more than the 396 tonnes sold last year and the second largest disposal of official sector gold reserves since the CBGA […]

Fears that the eurozone would suffer significant economic fall-out from the global credit squeeze heightened on Friday after the European Central Bank reported a sharp slowdown in demand for loans to business and a significant toughening of credit standards applied by banks.
Demand for loans by business was the weakest for two years and a […]

By Michael Mackenzie and Daniel Pimlott in New York
Published: September 28 2007 22:19
The dollar hit a record low against major currencies and gold reached a 27-year high on Friday as investors ignored data suggesting that inflation moderated last month. Analysts said the prospect of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and stronger growth outside […]

View from the City: Max King of broker Eden Group explains why the credit crunch will spark a 25% fall in sterling, impact on the UK’s inflated property market and will eventually lead to economic bust or at best, at long spell of stagnation…
[Full article … ]

LONDON (Reuters) - The problems facing embattled bank Northern Rock show that international banking regulations need improvement, Chancellor Alistair Darling said on Sunday.
Darling, speaking on Sky TV, said he had discussed the issue with other finance ministers last week and that discussions should continue later this year in order to bolster regulations and make […]