Scottish Independence: Business leaders sign letter backing “yes” vote August 28, 2014 Scottish firms have hit back at a letter signed by 130 business leaders slamming the case for Scottish independence with their own version: this morning, a letter signed by 200 pro-independence firms argued the exact opposite; that a "yes" vote would benefit the economy. Published in The Herald newspaper, it states: "An independent Scotland will recognise [...]
David Cameron: Independent Scotland cannot pilfer pound August 27, 2014 David Cameron will deliver a clear message to the leader of the Scottish independence campaign Alex Salmond today, warning there will not be a currency union under any circumstances if Scots vote Yes in the 18 September referendum. It comes despite Salmond’s claim that the Yes campaign has the edge and that Scotland would keep [...]
Calling all trendies and urbanites: Lidl’s £20m ads are aimed at YOU August 27, 2014 German discounter Lidl is gambling £20m on a new national TV advertising campaign to grab more middle-class shoppers from Tesco and Sainsbury’s. The ad, unveiled last night at the Victoria & Albert Museum, shows shoppers trying products at an East End market, only to find out that they were from Lidl. Products include Lidl’s £11.99 [...]
Ryanair’s revamp as it aims for business suits August 27, 2014 Budget airline Ryanair is looking to entice companies focused on their bottom line to choose its newly launched business class service, as it aims to become the default option for short-haul corporate travel. Ryanair, Europe’s largest no-frills airline, has attracted controversy in the past with mooted ideas of standing- only flights and charging to use [...]
European Central Bank hires Blackrock to help with loan purchase programme August 27, 2014 The European Central Bank (ECB) has appointed money managers Blackrock to advise the institution on a plan to buy up loans and help revive the bloc’s financial markets. Blackrock will advise the ECB on an asset-backed securities (ABS) purchase programme, which would be designed to give the stagnant euro economies a boost. However, former ECB [...]
Watchdog slaps £14.5m fine on RBS for advice August 27, 2014 THE ROYAL Bank of Scotland (RBS) was slapped with a £14.47m fine by the UK’s main banking watchdog yesterday over the quality of its mortgage advice. The penalty relates to two reviews of sales undertaken in 2012 – the Finance Conduct Authority (FCA) said that only two of the 164 mortgage agreements reviewed met the required standard, [...]
Christine Lagarde charged with negligence August 27, 2014 Head of the International Monetary Fund Christine Lagarde has been charged with “simple negligence” by a court in France, following claims of ministerial wrongdoing surrounding a €400m (£318m) payout to French businessman Bernard Tapie when she was finance minister. Lagarde said she would challenge the “totally baseless” decision.
Morrisons fights back as Tesco’s sales get worse August 27, 2014 The challenges facing Tesco incoming boss Dave Lewis were further laid bare yesterday after figures out yesterday showed a worsening sales performance at Britain’s largest grocer. According to data from Kantar Worldpanel, Tesco’s sales declined by four per cent year-on-year in the 12 weeks to 17 August. This means its market share fell to 28.8 [...]
Lidl by Lidl, the discounters are still on the rise – Bottom Line August 27, 2014 Fresh data, but no fresh hope for the mid-market grocers. Tesco dropped its market share to 28.8 per cent in the 12 weeks to 17 August, down from 30.2 per cent last year. Sainsbury’s also edged down. By contrast, premium player Waitrose grew its market share to 4.9 per cent – and its take at [...]
Monitise share price soars on extension to IBM partnership August 27, 2014 London-listed Monitise saw its shares soar 13.2 per cent yesterday after the mobile banking and payments firm announced a deeper alliance with business giant IBM. This would include the transfer of teams from Monitise’s development and implementation workforce to IBM. Monitise sells white-label mobile banking software – used by customers including Visa, Natwest and HSBC [...]