Mervyn King

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New £5 Note to Feature Winston Churchill

New note will begin circulation in 2016

(Newser) - Former Prime Minister Winston Churchill will be immortalized on the new £5 note, reports the BBC . The redesigned bills are due to start circulating in 2016, and the new £5 note will feature a 1941 image of Churchill on the reverse of the note, along with his famous...

25 People Responsible for the Crisis
25 People Responsible
for the Crisis
OPINION
Jan 26, 2009 3:25 PM CST

25 People Responsible for the Crisis

Greenspan, King, and Clinton all played a role, the Guardian writes

(Newser) - The current recession is a wholly man-made phenomenon, the Guardian reminds us, and they’ve got the names of those responsible. Here are four from their list of 25:
  • Alan Greenspan: Fed chair for 19 years, Greenspan kept interest rates low as the housing bubble developed, backed subprime lending and
...

Pound Craters After Latest Grim Stats

British currency falls to $1.56 amid recession fears

(Newser) - The British economy shrank by 0.5% last quarter, all but confirming that the UK is in its first recession since 1991, reports the Times of London. The decline is greater than expected, and this week both the prime minister and the head of the Bank of England acknowledged that...

Global Stocks Pounded, Dollar Hits Record Highs

Greenback soars to 5-year high against the pound

(Newser) - Stocks in Asia and Europe dove once again today, with banks leading losses as the continuing economic downturn hit corporate profits. The Nikkei in Tokyo closed down 6.8%, and London's FTSE opened down 2.3% after the Bank of England said that the country is in a recession. Meanwhile...

Bank of England Cuts Interest Rate

Bank votes quarter-point cut to 5% as downward pressure mounts

(Newser) - The Bank of England today cut its benchmark interest rate 25 basis points to 5%, reports Bloomberg, hoping to keep the nation’s economy out of recession. Despite the third cut since December, BoE’s rate remains the highest among the Group of Seven industrialized nations; policymakers have drawn fire...

Bank of England Governor Gets 2nd Term

King reappointed despite criticism over Northern Rock

(Newser) - Mervyn King has won a second term as governor of the Bank of England, the Fed's British counterpart, ending months of speculation about his future. Reuters reports that King will serve at the head of the UK central bank for another five years despite the City's fury at his handling...

UK Cuts Interest Rates, But EU Holds Steady

Subprime woes force first rate cut in Britain in over two years

(Newser) - The Bank of England cut its benchmark interest rate for the first time in over two years today, reducing the bank rate by a quarter-point to 5.5%. The cut drove the pound down to about $2.02, its lowest in 2 1/2 months. The European Central Bank in Frankfurt,...

UK Bank Chief Takes Heat After U-Turn

Rescue of Northern Rock leads to calls for resignation

(Newser) - The leader of the Bank of England, the Fed's counterpart in the UK, is facing substantial pressure to resign. Only last week Mervyn King had declined to offer loans for inter-bank trading to ease credit markets, vowing to discourage the "moral hazard" of risk-taking that led to Northern Rock's...

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