All Their Fault

THE WORST job in the world of money is held down by Anwar Ibrahim, Malaysia's finance minister. Quite apart from all his other worries, he has to mop up after his excitable......

Prepostulating

AN ECONOMIST is someone who, con- fronted with a tin of beans, will postulate a tin-opener. In Ernst & Young's Item Club he finds a home from home. Its latest effort is to show......

Home Guard

I ADMIRED the stately changing of the guard at HSBC, the Hongkong Bank group, but I shall find it hard to think of the bank without Sir William Purves, its craggy Cale- donian......

Frank Dobson's Army

A CHANCELLOR who wanted to know where the money had gone to could have picked up a clue at his party's conference. There he would have heard Frank Dobson, the genial bearded......

Jeux Sans Frontieres

BARCLAYS has an odd sense of timing. Its unhappy decision to demolish BZW and put its bids and deals business up for sale comes just when Europe's boardrooms are discovering the......

City And Suburban

Kenneth Clarke delivers a hospital pass and Gordon Brown gets rucked CHRISTOPHER FILDES THE HOSPITAL pass is a term of art in rugby football. Its unlucky recipient gets the ball......