Sorrell strikes again with deal for US digital advertisers December 4, 2018 Sir Martin Sorrell will make his second acquisition since leaving advertising giant WPP as he takes over Mighty Hive, a day after his new outfit announced it was in advanced talks with the company. S4 Capital, which was set up by Sorrell after he left the world's biggest advertising firm earlier this year, said it will [...]
Rigged and ready: After recent gains, are oil prices set to recover? December 4, 2018 The oil market has had a tough time this year, with prices sliding since October. And yet, there’s been a radical turn of events over recent days, with the picture looking drastically different as the markets opened for trading this week. In fact, one of yesterday’s biggest market movements was oil, with brent crude surging [...]
Will markets have a jolly festive season this year? December 4, 2018 It's December and time to deck the halls with boughs of holly. Or in CNBC’s case, it’s time for the business channel to be immersed in chatter of a potential Santa Claus rally and 2019 fortunes. Santa’s performance for the Dow Jones Industrial Average has been fairly reliable over the past five years, with investors rewarded [...]
Govia Thameslink Railway operator strikes deal with government following rail chaos December 4, 2018 Go Ahead Group has struck a deal with the Department for Transport to allow it to hang on to the troubled Govia Thameslink Railway franchise. Go Ahead has agreed to introduce a profit sharing mechanism with the DfT for the remainder of the franchise which runs until 2021. As a result, the margin over the [...]
DEBATE: Are we at risk of overreacting to the story of ‘forced hugging’ at Ted Baker? December 4, 2018 Are we at risk of overreacting to the story of ‘forced hugging’ at Ted Baker? Dr Joanna Williams, author of Women vs Feminism: Why We All Need Liberating from the Gender Wars, says YES. Alarming stories of sleazy bosses taking advantage of vulnerable young women can make it seem as if the workplace hasn’t changed since the 1960s. [...]
The G20 was a temporary truce, not the end of Trump’s trade war December 4, 2018 It would be easy to see last weekend’s G20 meeting as heralding a thaw in the US-China trade war. But sadly, it hasn’t. There are some positives. It looks increasingly likely that the US will not put in place a fresh 10-25 per cent tariff hike in January on $250bn of Chinese exports, as most had [...]
Theresa May’s deal isn’t ‘Brexit in name only’ – it’s the best way to leave the EU December 4, 2018 Referendums pose a challenge to representative democracies – namely, how does a simple yes-or-no question, like whether to remain in the EU, survive contact with the reality of negotiation, legislation and practical implementation? It is more challenging still when the result was as narrow as the Brexit vote. The answer to reconciling this web of [...]
Voting with your wallet is the ultimate consumer power December 4, 2018 The Labour party leadership believes that income inequality is far too high. As socialists, they think of income as centrally distributed, like slices of cake at a birthday party. Top company executives have seen sharp increases in pay in recent decades, so in Labour’s view, that means less sponge and icing for workers. The cutter [...]
Marlboro-maker Altria is in talks to invest in Canadian cannabis producer Cronos December 4, 2018 The company behind Marlboro cigarettes is in talks to invest in a Canadian cannabis producer as it looks to cash in on the recent legalisation of the drug in Canada. Altria is one of the world’s largest tobacco companies and the owner of the Marlboro brand. Cannabis producer Cronos confirmed the talks after reports that [...]
Consumer spending growth falls as festive shopping fails to boost high street December 4, 2018 Consumer spending growth fell year-on-year in November to its lowest level since March as falling confidence continues to impact struggling retailers. Growth in consumer spending was just 3.3 per cent, dragged down by poor sales in the retail sector, according to new figures from Barclaycard. The figure is the lowest since March this year, when [...]