Non-farm payroll: The pound has jumped against the dollar after US job openings massively undershot expectations last month (GBP USD) November 3, 2017 The pound has jumped against the dollar after a closely-watched measure of US employment massively undershot expectations. The pound soared past $1.31 in lunchtime trading, rising 0.4 per cent on the day, after US non-farm payrolls showed there were just 261,000 new job openings last month, against expectations of 313,000. However, the figure was a [...]
Services PMI: Pound sterling rises against the dollar and the euro as services sector beats expectations in October November 3, 2017 The pound edged slightly higher this morning after new figures showed the UK’s dominant services sector smashed expectations in October. IHS Markit’s purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for services rose to 55.6 in October, two full points above the previous month’s reading and well above expectations of a fall to 53.3. Any figure above 50 denotes [...]
Deputy governor of the Bank of England Ben Broadbent says more rate rises are on the way November 3, 2017 Deputy governor of the Bank of England said that more rate rises are on the cards. The bank increased its base rate for the first time in 10 years yesterday and upgraded its forecast for UK GDP in 2017. Read more: The pound is still wobbly after yesterday’s interest rate hike Broadbent has said this [...]
Bakking up: Tesco and Waitrose supplier Bakkavor sacks off London float November 3, 2017 Food supplier Bakkavor has backed out of its plan to float on the London Stock Exchange, saying current market conditions are too volatile. The IPO was set to take place this month and would have valued the company, which creates microwave meals and other products for the UK’s biggest supermarkets, at up to £2bn. Read [...]
Pound sterling edges even lower against the dollar and the euro after yesterday’s interest rate hike (GBP USD EUR) November 3, 2017 The pound weakened against the dollar again in early trading, after it plummeted in the aftermath of yesterday’s Bank of England interest rate hike. Sterling edged 0.1 per cent lower against the dollar, to $1.3049, although it was flat against the euro, at €1.1206. The currency fell by two cents against the dollar yesterday, after [...]
A Twitter employee deactivated Donald Trump’s account yesterday November 3, 2017 Twitter says an employee who briefly deactivated Donald Trump’s Twitter account yesterday was on their last day at the company. The US President’s account, which he set up in 2009, was shut down for 11 minutes by the unnamed employee, Twitter said. Read more: Trump’s ex-campaign boss charged with conspiracy against the US For a [...]
Arqiva scraps £6bn float amid market uncertainty November 3, 2017 TV transmitter firm Arqiva has scrapped its £6bn float on the London Stock Exchange, saying current market conditions are too uncertain. The IPO was set to be the biggest this year. The company, which owns many of the UK’s TV transmitters, had decided to float after a sale of the business fell through. The company [...]
The sexism scandal hasn’t hit the City yet: That doesn’t mean it’s immune November 3, 2017 It has been hailed as a revolution and bemoaned as a witch hunt. But what the scandal currently snaking through the corridors of Westminster is rapidly teaching us is that very few women exist who do not have a grizzly tale of workplace discrimination, whether it is from colleagues they should have been able to [...]
Banks must green up their act, for the sake of both planet and profit November 3, 2017 If you watch a TV ad for a UK high street bank these days, they are full of soft focus, half-speed footage of smiling, tanned pensioners vigorously enjoying their retirement, or shots of attractive young families surrounded by nature – all portraying vague notions of stability and future prosperity. But a new report from the [...]
Christmas shopping: Argos opens new fulfilment centres in Reading and Birmingham in time for Christmas rush November 3, 2017 Argos has opened two new regional fulfilment centres, boosting its online capacity ahead of the hectic Christmas shopping season. The centres in Birmingham and Reading will add 200,000 square feet of space for products offered on Argos’ next-day and same-day delivery services. Read more: Sainsbury’s suits up: Supermarket to sell smart mens clothes The new [...]