The latest inflation number for the UK economy is punchy. The analysts were looking for CPI at a little over 2.5 percent - the annualized figure as delivered is 3 percent. April came in at 0.8 percent. Food and energy prices are making it hard for the Bank of England to cut interest rates. This should be supportive for the British pound. But the market smells blood.   Read More

"History doesn't repeat itself, but it does rhyme," said Mark Twain.   Read More

When Warren Buffet treated his 31,000 plus audience to his annual Berkshire Hathaway gathering in Nebraska recently he was asked about the banks. When would he be happy to buy back into U.S. investment banks?    Read More

The Bank of England's financial stability report was vague enough on timing and specifics to avoid being seen as a market call on the financials - but that is how some are reading it.   Read More

Nobody should be surprised by the talk about a cash-raising exercise at RBS. The real question is why it is taking so long for the banks to acknowledge the continued deterioration in the quality of the assets they own.   Read More

Philips' first-quarter earnings came in weaker than forecast Monday morning, but the analysts are hanging on to their "buy" ratings.   Read More

Was he pushed? Was he tired? Was he running out of ideas? Was he the wrong man to steer the ship through an economic slowdown? Some analysts say more cost cutting needs to be done, and the BT CEO has not been aggressive enough.    Read More

What justifies the US markets' relative outperformance in the first quarter of 2008?    Read More

Financials led European markets higher, but how do you play a rally with little substance to it?   Read More

Decoupling, recoupling or just plain old late in the global economic cycle -- take your pick. There are myriad ways of describing China's dependence on U.S. growth.   Read More