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The credit crunch, the domino effect, and how it affects you
It would appear that the tsunami that started with the credit crunch and the near-collapse of the banking system is starting to really starting to unwind on major companies in the UK. And that should be a worry to everyone.
Michelin and Bentley put on brakes as economy slides towards recession
Last week it was JCB, this week more of our region's big employers have been forced to balance rising stock levels and falling demand for their products by cutting jobs or scaling back production.
French tyre maker Michelin's Stoke works, which employs about 1,200 people, and Bentley Motors, which had built its staff at Pyms Lane in Crewe to 4,000 people, have both announced measures to ease the pressure as consumers tighthen their purse-strings and save, rather than spend.
JCB: crunch time?
Two days, and two days about JCB. The first blog came before the details of the latest ultimatum emerged. And what do you make of them?
If you missed the details here they are: either the company's reduces its working hours and lose 180 jobs, or do nothing and lose up to 500 jobs.
It's a tough choice: certainly not one I'd like to make.
But it would appear to be sound thinking from a solid manufacturing company, although the manner of the announcement raises some worries.
When is it going to end?
When is it all going to end? That's the question that's on the lips of most bankers and people in financial services as the shockwaves from the credit crunch threaten to plunge the world economy into recession.
As years of boom built on financial wizardry continue to unravel, there is a distinct lack of certainty among investors, hence today's five per cent fall on shares that make up the FTSE 100 index.
The Credit Crunch - and how to keep smiling when you're on the edge of bankruptcy
Times are pretty tough at the moment. You've only got to look at the news to hear about the ongoing dire conditions for international banks, what with the collapse of Lehman Brothers and indeed the Icelandic economy.
It's not just the banks either. Locally, JCB and Wedgwood have both announced at least 700 redundancies caused by the credit crunch and the sword still hangs over the Fox's Biscuits factory in Uttoxeter.
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