Short-term Greek bond yields have jumped after the IMF’s board fell out over its rescue February 7, 2017 Yields on two-year Greek debt jumped to almost 9.7 per cent this morning, the highest since last summer, after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) admitted its executive board was divided over the issue of the country's bailout. The IMF has been at loggerheads with other members of the so-called troika of creditors involved in Greece's bailout for [...]
Ofgem’s price cap on prepayment meters will save Brits £80 per year February 7, 2017 Britain's energy regulator has announced a price cap that could save more than 4m households around £80 per year. Ofgem's temporary cap on prepayment meters is one of the results of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)'s two-year investigation of the energy market. The levels of the cap vary for electricity and gas, by meter type and region, [...]
This is how far house prices fell in January February 7, 2017 House prices fell month-on-month in January, reversing the strong house price growth recorded at the end of last year. According to Halifax's house price index, house prices fell 0.9 per cent last month. Year-on-year growth was 5.7 per cent, down from an annual growth of 6.5 per cent in December. Read more: This is how [...]
FirstGroup gets Brexit boost from sterling despite flat performance in UK February 7, 2017 FirstGroup enjoyed a Brexit boost as the devaluation of sterling delivered a strong revenue increase despite its continued struggles in its UK buses business. The figures Group revenue increased by 12.8 per cent because of the devaluation of sterling since the EU referendum, as foreign earnings became more valuable. Without the sterling boost the group’s [...]
Aldi just became the UK’s fifth largest grocer February 7, 2017 Aldi has become the UK's fifth largest grocer by market share, overtaking the Co-op. According to data from Kantar Worldpanel, Aldi grew its sales by 12.4 per cent in the 12 weeks ending 29 January. Its share of the market now stands at 6.2 per cent. Read more: A Lidl competition: Aldi becomes the highest-paying supermarket in the UK [...]
BNP Paribas announces new digital push as profits rise February 7, 2017 BNP Paribas has announced it will invest billions in a new digitalisation push as it reports a growth in gross operating income and revenues for 2016. The figures Revenues grew by 1.1 per cent in 2016 compared to the previous year to reach €43.4bn (£37.3bn), although €597m came from the sale of shares in Visa [...]
London’s classic red phone boxes are getting a makeover – complete with Wi-Fi and touchscreens February 7, 2017 You may have noticed some rather different phone boxes to what you're used to popping up on the streets of the capital. Well that's because the iconic red phone box is getting a revamp and New World Payphones has been wheeling out swanky new versions complete with high-speed Wi-Fi, touchscreen functions for local services and digital [...]
The language of love sweet-talks the City February 7, 2017 Parisians are often stereotyped as being a little rude. While this may ring true with anyone who has ever tried to catch a waiter’s eye in one of the city’s restaurants, yesterday it was all charm and warmth as a delegation from the French capital set out their stall to City execs. Paris joins the [...]
Inflation is striking back – and it will have implications for our politics February 7, 2017 Over the last two years, thanks to a low oil price, many economies have been living under a low-inflation illusion. 2017 looks set to be the year inflation strikes back. Rumbles of protectionism, uncertainty over Brexit, and Donald Trump’s expansionary fiscal policy all point to growing inflationary pressures further down the line. But immediate factors [...]
We’ll never solve the housing crisis if we continue to blame it on house-builders and migrants February 7, 2017 England's housing disaster is well-publicised. Construction has not kept pace with demographic change and successive governments have failed to address the consequences. The hotly-anticipated housing White Paper, out today, will sound an attempt to address this and some backlash against its proposals seems inevitable. It’s commonplace for us to blame greedy house-builders or uncontrolled immigration, [...]