European Union lawmakers are poised to negotiate details of a proposed law that would ban banks from paying bonuses stemming from profits tied to cheap European Central Bank loans as part of a broader overhaul of proposed banking rules. And in the US, a long-awaited decision is expected on the handling of private company accounting standards.
Africa is home to some of the fastest-growing economies in the world. Many of its countries have less corruption, are easier to do business with, and are more democratic than several fast-developing nations in Europe and Asia. But dated perceptions still keep many investors away, according to an Ernst & Young report.
More US manufacturers expect to hire more, profit more and invest more in the year ahead. Meanwhile, they’re less worried about barriers to growth such as taxes and new regulations. Also, while some manufacturers remain uncertain about the global economy, others are showing gains in sales abroad.
A trade deal between the US and Colombia – which is expected to boost US GDP by $2.5 billion – takes effect on Tuesday. As part of the deal, Colombia agreed to eliminate measures that prevented firms from hiring US professionals.
Midsize U.S. companies, which generate about 40% of U.S. GDP, have become less optimistic about the economy. This sentiment is reflected in their hiring and expansion plans and their plans to invest in technology.
China’s economy seems to have avoided a “hard landing,” but the slowing of the economic boom reveals problems that China must battle to build a modern, high-income society.
British economic indicators will take on new scrutiny in the weeks ahead, following recent news that the UK fell back into recession during the first three months of this year—the first double dip there since the 1970s.
A sense of guarded optimism about the global economy in the first quarter points to a growth phase rather than a widespread recovery, suggests a panel commenting on the CGMA Global Economic Index.
The US labour market has been warming up in recent months. Will the trend continue in April? Several jobs reports due out in the coming week will provide insight into the US employment situation.
The volume of corporate acquisitions involving emerging markets dropped in the last six months of 2011. The fall in activity reflects a global trend in the M&A arena. Africa emerged, though, as a more significant target market for acquisitions.
The Chinese economic boom is weakening, tensions remain high in the Middle East and inflationary pressures weigh on India, but as a group emerging economies are expected to grow. That growth is likely to change trade patterns and expand middle-class populations.
The Federal Open Market Committee, which makes key decisions about the nation’s money supply, meets to discuss interest rates. The federal funds rate has remained at historic lows since 2008. Will moderate improvement in the US economy encourage the Fed to bump up the benchmark rate? Or will it stick to a plan to keep the rate low until late 2014?
In the US, one-third more companies went public in the first quarter than a year ago, and new issuers attracted strong after-market interest from investors. But, going forward, uncertainties in the global economy might add some choppiness to the IPO market.
Europe’s sovereign debt crisis is expected to dominate discussions at the annual spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. The IMF has been trying to raise lending resources, but power struggles are creating hurdles.
One free CPE credit will be available to CGMA credential holders who participate from 11 a.m. to noon Wednesday, April 18, in the quarterly CGMA Global Economic Forecast audio webcast “Widespread Recovery, or Uneven Terrain.”
In the first quarter, Canadian executive chartered accountants felt more optimistic about the US economy, the Canadian economy and about the prospects of their own companies than they did in the fourth quarter of 2011, according to the “CICA/RBC Business Monitor”.
In the coming week: US President Barack Obama and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff will meet in Washington to continue dialogue on energy and economic issues. Meanwhile, new data could tell if China’s economic growth continues to slow. And the IFRS Foundation trustees meet in London.
The global financial crisis has brought treasurers to the fore. Timon Drakesmith, CFO of property management firm Hammerson, and Joe Romenesko, global treasurer of financial provider to the property industry, Jones Lang LaSalle, explain how their strategies have changed.
CGMAs have become a little more confident about current global economic conditions, according to the inaugural CGMA Global Economic Outlook Index, a new quarterly snapshot of AICPA and CIMA members.
