Jobs and Cars trouble continues as Wall Street waits

Everyone’s waiting for what Obama will say, and do, on the economy even stock traders as CNNMoney reports that stocks on Wall Street are set to go down in value today.

Meanwhile there’s a mix of bad and good news on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean as Times reports that inflation in Britain has stumbled to 3.1% in the last three months of 2008. RBS’ shares, which yesterday announced the biggest loss in British corporate history, are today trading at higher prices. 

This is however overshadowed by news that food firm Vion and clothing firm Burberry are set to axe jobs. 

European car-makers urgently need money, said Renault’s Chief Carlos Ghosn at a summit in France today. More than 10% of France’s workforce is employed in the car industry. France is preparing a plan to inject more cash in the industry.

Toyota’s also in trouble as it fired its President today after the company reduced its sales by 4%.

Bank posts biggest loss in British history

CNBC just announced that Royal Bank of Scotland, one of the major banks in Britain, has posted a $30 billion loss for 2008.

This is the biggest loss in Britian’s corporate history.

“If the banking system collapses, every single one of us would see the obvious problems. The economy would come down with it,”  said Alistair Darling, Britian’s Chancellor of the Exchequer.

This news comes as the UK government prepares to take over as much as 70% of the bank in a bid to rescue it. This is part of a £300bn rescue package that was announced this morning.

Some sectors of the press are however already doubtful whether this second bank bailout will be successful.

Professor Peter Spencer from York University however argues, “We must not lose sight of the fact that they [bank bailouts] have prevented the collapse of the monetary system.” Were this to happen, this would spell disaster for the whole global economy.

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard however states that “this does not mean that recovery is imminent’.

I do not envy anyone who has to deal with this financial mess.