Embankment traffic harming 15,000 east London businesses, study warns December 2, 2018 Heavy traffic on the Embankment is causing serious economic harm to east London businesses, a new study has warned. Research by transport economists Volterra Partners revealed the removal of a traffic lane on the A3211, which runs between Westminster Bridge and Tower Hill, has significantly increased journey times. Volterra partners said increased congestion has meant [...]
Private sector growth slows amid ‘lacklustre’ conditions as Brexit uncertainty weighs on firms December 2, 2018 Private sector growth slowed in the quarter to November amid “lacklustre” conditions, with activity relatively stable compared to a rise in previous monthly figures. According to a survey from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), the balance of firms reporting a rise in output was two per cent in the three months to November, down [...]
Trump cancels new tariffs as China pledges to reduce trade gap December 2, 2018 US president Donald Trump has scrapped plans to increase tariffs on Chinese goods, in an announcement that sees the year-long US-China trade war cool considerably. The White House announced it would hold fire on raising tariffs on $200bn (£156bn) worth of goods from China. They had been scheduled to increase to 25 per cent from 1 [...]
Court short: Will Brexit loosen the UK’s legal grip? December 2, 2018 Last Thursday, Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska squared off against a fellow Russian businessman Vladimir Chernukhin in court 15 of London’s Rolls Building, while in court 28 two Romanian oil companies went toe-to-toe, and in Court 19 a Russian bank litigated against some of its former shareholders. London has developed into a pre-eminent international dispute resolution [...]
Zoopla founder Alex Chesterman drives away with £30m funding for used car startup December 2, 2018 Zoopla founder Alex Chesterman wants to cut out the awkward tyre-kicking from buying a used car with a new startup. Chesterman, who sold Zoopla for £2.2bn earlier this year, said Cazoo aimed to make buying a car “no different to buying any other product online today”. The entrepreneur, who will serve as Cazoo’s CEO, has [...]
Oldest ever Chivas Scotch commands 21k price tag at Sotheby’s auction December 2, 2018 A bottle of Chivas’s oldest ever Scotch whisky has fetched £21,780 at a Sotheby’s auction in London, one of four limited edition bottles made to celebrate Manchester United’s 1968 European Cup victory. The bottle, containing the oldest whisky ever made by the Highlands-based producer, is the only one of the four that has been put [...]
Ofcom worried Royal Mail productivity slump could threaten company’s long-term finances December 2, 2018 Ofcom has warned that Royal Mail’s long-term sustainability could be under threat in the wake of a profit warning which sent the recently privatised company’s shares plummeting. The watchdog, which monitors the postal service’s ability to deliver letters and parcels across the country six days a week for a fixed fee, said in an annual [...]
US judge seizes laptop of app boss who leaked Facebook info to British MPs December 2, 2018 The software company co-founder who released a trove of sensitive documents about Facebook to a parliamentary committee has been ordered by a US judge to turn in his electronic devices for inspection. San Mateo County judge V. Raymond Swope ordered Ted Kramer, the founder of Six4three – a now-defunct bikini-related app company – to pass [...]
Israeli police recommend charging PM Benjamin Netanyahu on corruption charges December 2, 2018 Israel’s police have said there is enough evidence to press charges against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a third corruption probe. In a statement, they said authorities had found evidence of fraud and bribery against the Prime Minister, who faced similar allegations in February. Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, are suspected of advancing regulatory benefits [...]
Ted Baker staff launch petition over boss’s unwanted ‘hugs’ and alleged harassment December 2, 2018 Staff at Ted Baker have launched a petition calling for an end to a culture of “forced hugs” and unwanted attention from the company’s founder and boss. A employee-launched petition accuses chief executive Ray Kelvin of inappropriate behaviour and comments to staff. “He'll want to brush this under the carpet,” the petition’s author wrote. “But [...]