Newsweek (February 8)
“A hard “Brexit could threaten 30,000 jobs in London’s world-class finance sector,” according to a recent report, if the firms “lose their ‘passport’ to operate across the EU.” Of course, nobody will really know until Brexit transpires, but the same study suggests “17 percent of all U.K. banking assets might be on the move as a result of Brexit” and the U.K.’s share of the European financial services market could contract from the current 90% to around 60%.
New York Times (September 20)
Days after the Chelsea bombing, with an eye to this week’s UN meeting, the mayors of three great cities (Bill de Blasio of New York, Anne Hidalgo of Paris and Sadiq Khan of London) write, “We know policies that embrace diversity and promote inclusion are successful. We call on world leaders to adopt a similar welcoming and collaborative spirit on behalf of the refugees all over the world during the summit meeting this week. Our cities stand united in the call for inclusivity. It is part of who we are as citizens of diverse and thriving cities.”
Tags: Bombing, Chelsea, De Blasio, Diversity, Hidalgo, Inclusion, Khan, London, Mayors, New York, Paris, Refugees, Thriving cities, UN meeting
Washington Post (April 22)
During his visit to London, President Obama has been somewhat controversially urging the British to remain in the EU. “British leadership in the world is very much at stake. And because it really is a matter of profound, bipartisan, long-term U.S. interest that Britain remain a European power and thus a world power, Obama is right to take the risk and say so.”
Tags: Bipartisan, Controversial, EU, London, Obama, Risk, U.S., UK
Financial Times (October 11)
If Uber “wants to continue to grow in London and around the world, Uber needs to be able to persuade politicians that it is worth facing down the established taxi operators who are resisting change. If vested interests prevent its innovations in service from reaching their full potential, it would count as an enormous missed opportunity.”
Tags: Change, Innovation, London, Missed opportunity, Politicians, Potential, Service, Taxi operators, Uber
Financial Times (May 26)
Global cities now “drive the world’s economy. The 600 biggest cities account for more than 60 per cent of global gross domestic product. The top 20 are home to one-third of all large corporations, and almost half of their combined revenues. Tokyo leads the pack — in population size, economic punch and number of corporate headquarters — ahead of New York, London and Paris.”
Tags: Cities, Corporations, Economics, Economy, GDP, London, New York, Paris, Population, Revenues, Tokyo
The Economist (April 4)
“Poor land use in the world’s greatest cities carries a huge cost.” There isn’t much real shortage of land in even the most heavily populated areas. Instead poor regulations stifle efficient land use. “In the West End of London,” these regulations “inflate the price of office space by about 800%; in Milan and Paris the rules push up prices by around 300%.” But the effect on economic growth is even more profound. “Lifting all the barriers to urban growth in America could raise the country’s GDP by between 6.5% and 13.5%, or by about $1 trillion-2 trillion.”
Tags: Barriers, Cities, Economic growth, GDP, Land use, London, Milan, Paris, Regulations, Shortage, U.S., Urban growth
Wall Street Journal (May 9)
“Driven by a surge in international interest, total commercial property transactions in Tokyo jumped 71% to $10.1 billion from the same period last year, leaping above New York and London.” Tokyo’s commercial real estate market was the largest in the world during the first quarter of 2014. This marked “the first time the Japanese capital has topped an ongoing survey of the world’s major cities launched a decade ago.”
Tags: Commercial property, Japan、New York, London, Market, Real estate, Surge, Tokyo, Transactions
Euromoney (February Issue)
“London and Luxembourg are at loggerheads to become Europe’s leading offshore renminbi hub—although they wouldn’t let you know it.” Right now the competition looks evenly matched. “Competition, not cooperation, between the financial centres is spurring on the internationalization of the renminbi. The competition continues. And this is a good thing.”
Tags: Competition, Cooperation, Europe, Hub, Internationalization, London, Luxembourg, Offshore, Renminbi
Bloomberg (January 7, 2014)
A war of words has been playing out in London’s Daily Telegraph where the ambassadors from China and Japan have been “using wildly undiplomatic language to characterize” each other’s countries. In op-ed pieces, they both, in turn, accused the other’s country of being “Lord Voldemort.” While the Harry Potter jibes seem comical, “the exchange is a troubling sign, and one that raises questions about whether commercial ties will be enough to prevent Asia’s two big powers from sliding toward outright conflict.”
Tags: Ambassadors, Asia, China, Commercial ties, Conflict, Daily Telegraph, Harry Potter, Japan, Language, London, Lord Voldemort, Undiplomatic, War
Euromoney (October Issue)
“Today, Luxembourg’s streets are filling with Chinese bankers. They see the Grand Duchy as a hub for their European operations—not least for trading and settlement of the renminbi. Are London, Frankfurt and Paris in danger of being left behind?”
Tags: Chinese bankers, European operations, Frankfurt, Hub, London, Luxembourg, Paris, Renminbi, Settlement, Trading
