| Germans call for return of paintings seized by British troops
MRWIK. Pressure is mounting for the return of paintings seized from Germany in 1945 and now at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich.
In January, The Art Newspaper revealed that Claus Bergens Wreath in the North Sea in Memory of the Battle of Jutland had been taken by British troops from the Mrwik Naval Academy. The following month, we reported that six additional German paintings had come to the museum as war trophies (January 2007, pp 1,8 and February, pp 10,11).
Professor Lars Scholl, director of the German Maritime Museum in Bremerhaven and a Bergen specialist, last month called for the restitution of the pictures: "It would be desirable to return them to Germany so that they could play an important role in changing our views on the issue of war propaganda and trophies.
Mortgage lending holds up, but lenders more cautious
LONDON (SHARECAST) - February saw a record level of mortgage lending but signs are growing the UK housing market could be slowing, two of the UK's lending bodies said today. Building societies lent a record 4.21bn in February, up from 3.18bn this time last year. Approvals also rose from 3.65bn to 4.92bn, according to the the Building Societies Association. Yet again, building societies saw record lending in February, with gross lending the highest ever for that month, director general Adrian Coles said. The BSA cautioned, though, that the full impact of interest rates coming through could slow the market down later in the year. Figures from British Bankers' Association suggest that might be happening already. Its members lent 5.2bn last month, down from a 5.4bn increase in January and also below the six-month average of monthly lending of 5.7bn.
Increased provisioning to cost banks Rs 4000 cr
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), in its third-quarter review of the monetary policy for 2006-07 (refers to financial year, April 1 to March 31), has increased the provisioning requirements for scheduled commercial banks (SCBs or banks) from 1% to 2%; the increase applies to banks exposure in the standard assets category towards the real estate sector, outstanding credit card receivables, loans and advances qualifying as capital market exposure, and personal loans. Further, the provisioning requirement for banks exposures in the standard assets category to the non-deposit-taking systemically important non-banking financial companies (NBFCs-ND_SI) was increased to 2% from 0.4%. The increase in provisioning requirements would have a significant impact on banks profitability if the entire enhanced provisioning quantum were to be borne by banks in 2006-07.
A Crisis Survivor, Faces Another One
New Century Financial Corp.'s meltdown has been portrayed as the tale of a company that couldn't keep up with rapidly deteriorating conditions in the convulsing subprime mortgage market. But the man at the company's helm is known as a stickler for process and minutiae who sought investors' respect in the often-maligned subprime industry. According to current and former associates, Brad Morrice, New Century's embattled 50-year-old chief executive, is the opposite of so-called imperial CEOs who remain aloof from day-to-day business, allowing them to claim ignorance of possible mistakes and misdeeds. Associates describe Mr. Morrice as a down-in-the-trenches executive who has ... .
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