In brief: PPI repayments boost economy, Standard Chartered hits back over Iran money laundering claims and Halifax says house prices fell by 6%
FINANCIAL TIMES
Bank scandal has silver lining for UK
By Norma Cohen, Sharlene Goff and Lucy Warwick-Ching
Refunds of mis-sold payment protection insurance are doing more to boost Britain’s stuttering economy than government initiatives to stimulate growth, official and bank data show.
The UK’s five biggest banks have set aside almost £9bn to cover claims for selling their customers loan insurance that was either not needed or could not be used, in one of the most costly consumer scandals on record
bbc.co.uk
Standard Chartered shares dip on laundering allegations
Shares of Standard Chartered bank have tumbled in Hong Kong despite the bank denying allegations that it illegally "schemed" with Iran to launder money.
Its shares fell as much as 7.5% to HK$174 in early trade.
The New York State Department of Financial Services said the bank laundered as much as $250bn (£161bn) over nearly a decade. It said the bank hid transactions for "Iranian financial institutions" that were subject to US economic sanctions.
SKY NEWS
Bank Hits Back Over Rogue Iran Deals Claim
London-listed Standard Chartered has rejected a US regulator's claim that it hid $250bn worth of illegal transactions with Iranian banks over nearly a decade.
The New York department of financial services says the bank operated as a "rogue institution", engaged in "deceptive and fraudulent misconduct", and lied to regulators to cover up its actions.
But the UK institution has hit back saying it "does not believe the order issued by the DFS presents a full and accurate picture of the facts".
THE GUARDIAN
House prices fall 0.6%, says Halifax
By Hilary Osborne
House prices fell by 0.6% in July, reversing much of the 0.8% increase recorded in June, according to mortgage lender Halifax.
The bank's latest snapshot of the housing market echoes that of rival lender Nationwide, which reported a 0.7% fall in July. But while Nationwide put the annual decline at 2.6%, Halifax said it was just 0.6%.
The three-month change, which is regarded as a better indicator of the state of the housing market, showed prices remained flat.
THE SUN
Argies in bid for oil off Falklands
By Rhodri Phillips
Argentina is in controversial talks to explore for oil off the Falkland Islands.
The Buenos Aires government has discussed a potential drilling operation with neighbour Venezuela’s state-owned petroleum company PDVSA.
DAILY MAIL
British firms are pulling money out of EU banks amid concerns over euro
By James Salmon
Some of the UK’s biggest listed companies are pulling money out of European banks and drawing up contingency plans for the break up of the euro, amid growing fears over the future of the single currency.
British Airways, pharmaceuticals giants AstraZeneca and GlaxoSmithKline, as well as Royal Dutch Shell, are among those making emergency preparations as the eurozone debt crisis escalates.
THE TELEGRAPH
Germany and Italy near blows over euro
By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
...The dispute comes as relations between Germany and Italy touch the lowest ebb since the Second World War, with Il Libero publishing a front-page picture of Chancellor Angela Merkel under the headline “Fourth Reich”.
“The tone of the debate has turned dangerous. We must be careful that Europe does not rip itself apart,” said German foreign minister, Guido Westerwelle. He himself fanned the flames over the weekend, saying he was “categorically” against further expansion of the EU rescue machinery or bond purchases by the European Central Bank.
DAILY EXPRESS
Energy bills to rocket by £300
By John Ingham
Family energy bills will soar by more than £300 a year because of the obsession with wind power, a report claimed yesterday.
The Government’s green crusade “blunder” will cost £124billion, according to a former World Bank adviser.
He estimates that by 2020 domestic electricity bills will have risen by up to 58 per cent under plans for a huge increase in the number of onshore and offshore wind turbines.
THE INDEPENDENT
Top finance minister in clash with Osborne over credit rating
By Ben Chu
Speculation grew yesterday that George Osborne's economic credibility could be about to suffer a stunning blow as his deputy sought to downplay the importance of the UK's vaunted AAA credit rating.
Danny Alexander, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, told the BBC that the UK's top-notch status "is not the be all and end all". That was in sharp contrast to the Chancellor's emphasis in recent years on the overriding economic importance of Britain retaining its AAA status.
THE TIMES
Shops count cost of calls to stay away from London
By Kathryn Hopkins and Marcus Leroux
Shops that banked on a summer of events including the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, Euro 2012 and the Olympic Games breathing new life into the high street have been left feeling as grey as the weather.
The British Retail Consortium and KPMG have reported that like-for-like sales rose by a meagre 0.1 per cent in the year to July, compared with a 0.6 per cent increase in the same month last year.
THE SCOTSMAN
Pedal to metal: car sales growth in Scotland double that of UK rate
By Gareth Mackie
Car dealers have shrugged off the gloomy economic conditions to record the highest rise in sales for two years, driven by a surprisingly strong increase in Scotland as private buyers flocked to the showrooms.
The jump in July registrations means that Scottish sales in the year to date are growing at more than twice the rate for the UK as a whole.
CITY A.M.
New chapter for publishing as Amazon Kindle overtakes print
By James Titcomb
Ebooks are outselling their printed counterparts at Britain’s largest bookseller Amazon for the first time, the web giant has revealed.
Across Amazon’s UK operations, 114 Kindle ebooks have been sold for every 100 hardback or paperback editions this year. The figures also showed that ereaders are sparking a boom in total book sales, with Kindle owners buying four times as many titles – whether in print or ebook format – as they did before they owned the device.
