Free Republic

CLAIMS that Scottish Widows owner Lloyds TSB will violate the Data Protection Act by transferring jobs to India were today branded "ill-founded and ludicrous" by a legal expert. An unnamed bank customer has asked for the Government-appointed Information Commissioner to rule on whether it is legal for Lloyds TSB to transfer personal data files out of Europe without the customer’s consent. The challenge threatens to throw plans by several banking giants to shift jobs to the sub-continent into chaos - with hundreds of posts in the Capital alone considered under threat from such off-shoring plans. But today national law firm...

WASHINGTON – Factory orders in June increased by the largest amount in three months, offering the latest evidence that the struggling manufacturing sector may be on the mend. Factory orders jumped 1.7% to $325.98 billion, the Commerce Department said Monday, following a revised 0.3% gain in May. Economists had expected a 1.6% rise, according to a survey by Dow Jones and CNBC. "It's evidence of improvement for the manufacturing sector. This is encouraging news," said John Lonski, economist with Moody's Investors Service. Orders for durable goods such as cars and appliances, data that were first reported June 25, were revised...