Mixed bag for Britain’s grocers as market cools despite record Christmas spending forecasts December 11, 2018 Shoppers have been taking fewer trips to the supermarket in recent weeks after a bumper summer of demand, according to new data that suggests Britain's grocery sector has slowed to its lowest rate of growth in more than a year. Despite projections that spending this Christmas will break UK records, the supermarket sector grew at two [...]
Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou’s bail hearing to to continue as judge weighs flight risk December 11, 2018 Huawei's chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou is set to return to court for a third day of bail hearings today as she discovers if she will be freed on bail pending extradition to the US. Meng, faces accusations that she misled banks about Huawei’s control of a company operating in Iran, putting the banks at [...]
Can Interserve clean up its mess, or is it destined for the same fate as its failed rival Carillion? December 11, 2018 It feels like we’ve been here before, doesn’t it? It was almost a year ago when outsourcing giant Carillion collapsed, and now there are some worrying signs that rival FTSE firm Interserve could wind up suffering the same fate, serving a huge blow to UK businesses and the livelihoods of its 75,000 employees. On Sunday [...]
And BDO makes five? Don’t count on it, says firm’s global chief December 11, 2018 The global boss of professional services firm BDO had said it has no ambitions to join the ranks of the Big Four, as it aims for dominance of the mid-market across its operations. The firm, Britain’s sixth-largest auditor, revealed its global fee income hit $8.99bn (£7.16bn) for the past year – a 10.7 per cent [...]
Former Nissan chairman Ghosn files complaint over detention in Tokyo December 11, 2018 Former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn has filed a complaint against the extension of his detention in Japan on financial misconduct charges. Ghosn was formally charged and re-arrested yesterday on fresh allegations of under-reporting his salary, meaning he is likely to remain in detention until the end of the year. The former chairman’s lawyer, Motonari Ohtsuru, [...]
May’s Brexit failure has hit the economy December 11, 2018 Tear your eyes away from Westminster for a moment, and consider Morgan McKinley’s London Employment Monitor. Today’s report is not good. Available financial services jobs in the capital in November were down four per cent month-on-month, and 39 per cent on the previous year. Job-seeker numbers are also down. This is particularly worrying as yesterday’s [...]
Ashtead promises to beat expectations after US division cleans up following hurricanes December 11, 2018 Rental firm Ashtead saw revenue climb past the £1bn mark in its latest quarter as US division Sunbelt got a boost from the aftermath of two US hurricanes, scoring investors a healthy return on their shares. The figures Ashtead, which rents out industrial equipment like diggers and construction tools, recorded a 17 per cent year-on-year [...]
DEBATE: Does Britain now have a Prime Minister who is in office without being in power? December 11, 2018 Does Britain now have a Prime Minister who is in office without being in power? Olivia Utley, deputy editor at TheArticle, says YES. When Theresa May became Prime Minister, she promised to be all things to all people. To Remainers, the pragmatist who would keep Brexit damage to a minimum; to Leavers, the leader who would [...]
Bored of Brexit? How the B-word went from advertiser’s dream to branding disaster December 11, 2018 The word “Brexit” is unavoidable. When we pick up a newspaper, turn on the TV, or log in to social media, the B-word follows us everywhere. For many of the world’s largest brands, this would be a dream. The likes of Nike, Coca-Cola and Amazon spend billions of pounds for the kind of ubiquity that [...]
Private firms should embrace this new chapter of governance December 11, 2018 Up until now, privately held companies of all sizes have largely been left to their own devices as far as governance is concerned. With the main UK Corporate Governance Code only applying to firms traded on the London Stock Exchange, private companies could broadly avoid letting the sunlight into their internal practices. But this state of [...]