A round-up of today's other stories in brief
Positive update from WorldSpreads
Financial markets trading group WorldSpreads said trading activity to its year end in March had continued to grow strongly, led by new client acquisitions and increased bet numbers, "both of which have continued to accelerate".
In a trading update yesterday WorldSpreads said it had been investing in IT, human resources, sales and marketing to accelerate its international expansion.
As a result, the company’s board said it was confident it would meet or exceed its financial targets for the year.
Ireland's external debt rose to 1.74 trillion in June, says CSO
Ireland's external debt rose to €1.74 trillion at the end of June, according to new figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
This represents a €63 billion increase compared to the €1.67 billion recorded at the end of March. The figures include general government, the monetary authority, financial and non-financial corporations and households. Much of the external debt total is offset by holdings of foreign financial assets by Irish residents, the CSO said.
General government foreign borrowing decreased by over €3 billion to €80 billion in the second quarter.
However, the liabilities of other sectors increased by €17 billion from the end of March and at €657 billion represented 38 per cent of the total debt, a similar share to the previous quarter. The CSO attributed the increase to currency fluctuations.
Direct investment liabilities increased by €17 billion to €262 billion in the second quarter.
Connemara mining funded until 2012
Connemara Mining, the Irish Aim-listed zinc exploration company, said yesterday its drilling programme for the remainder of this year and the entirety of 2011 is fully funded after it raised £1 million in a share placing in July of this year.
Connemara plans to complete 40 drill holes this year at its 32 Irish exploration licences. The majority of work is taking place on the 16 exploration licences at Stonepark, Limerick, where zinc has been discovered.
A further 80 exploratory holes will also be drilled.
No dividends from Swiss bank UBS
Swiss bank UBS does not expect to pay dividends for some time so that it can preserve capital to meet the tougher Basel III rules and avoid the need to raise fresh funds.
UBS, Europe's largest wealth manager by assets, would reduce its risk- weighted assets under the new rules, which it expected to meet by 2013, said chief financial officer John Cryan.
Construction work down by over 30%
Building and construction activity fell by almost a third in the second quarter of 2010, according to data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
The volume of output was 32.8 per cent lower compared with the same period in 2009, among the largest decreases in the EU.
The value of production was down 31.8 per cent, due largely to a slump of over 10 per cent in residential work.
Claims shows US economy picking up
New claims for jobless aid in the United States fell last week, while manufacturing in the nation's midwest region grew faster than expected in September, supporting the view that economic activity picked up a bit in the third quarter.
Another report showed that consumer spending was slightly stronger than had been expected in the April-June period. – (Reuters)
BP chief aims to restore dividends
BP's incoming chief executive Bob Dudley said he wanted to restore dividend payments next year, in line with previous guidance, as the company looks to put the Gulf of Mexico disaster behind it. "The board will get together and talk before the end of the year about restoring a dividend in some form in the first quarter," Mr Dudley told BBC television. – (Reuters)
