Energy group Wood to sell nuclear arm for £250m August 20, 2019 British energy services firm Wood is to sell its nuclear business for about £250m ($301m) to a subsidiary of US company Jacobs in a drive to reduce its debt. Read more: EDF seeks guarantee for nuclear project The firm made the announcement as it released its half-year results, which showed a rise in pre-tax profit [...]
Customers click but don’t collect £228m of goods per year August 20, 2019 Click and collect services have been touted as a potential way of reviving ailing high streets, but customers are failing to collect £228m of ordered goods per year, new research has found. One in seven shoppers surveyed admitted to not collecting items they had ordered online, according to research by Barclaycard, which also found that [...]
Abellio boss ‘confident’ review head will not scrap franchise model August 19, 2019 The boss of Abellio has said he is “confident” the rail franchise model will not be scrapped just a day after his firm took over one of the leading contracts in the UK. Dominic Booth, the managing director of Abellio, which officially took over the East Midlands franchise from Stagecoach today, said he thought the [...]
Top US business bosses abandon shareholder-first principle August 19, 2019 The age-old principle that shareholders come first has been ditched by an influential lobbying group representing some of the world’s most senior business bosses. Maximising profits for investors should no longer be the main priority for firms, an organisation called The Business Roundtable concluded today, as it signalled a major corporate shift towards achieving wider [...]
Eurozone inflation falls to well below ECB target in July August 19, 2019 Prices in the Eurozone rose by just one per cent in July, official figures showed today, far below the European Central Bank’s (ECB) inflation target, making it increasingly likely the Bank will relaunch its giant bond-buying programme next month. Read more: US and European stocks buoyed by ECB rate cut expectations The one per cent [...]
German central bank warns economy could already be in recession August 19, 2019 Germany’s central bank has warned that the country’s economy could already be in recession as the malaise in its industrial sector continues. Read more: German economy shrinks in second quarter as exports slump The German economy, Europe’s biggest, contracted in the second quarter due to falling exports and industrial production induced by trade tensions, a [...]
Mark Carney says negative interest rates ‘not an option’ for BoE August 19, 2019 Bank of England governor Mark Carney has said his institution will not pursue negative interest rates, a monetary policy device employed by the European Central Bank (ECB) and Bank of Japan, among others. Read more: BoE boss Mark Carney pulls out of UK-China dinner “At this stage we do not see negative rates as an [...]
Abellio takes over East Midlands franchise from Stagecoach August 19, 2019 Dutch train firm Abellio has officially taken over the East Midlands franchise from Stagecoach. Abellio will operate the franchise, which connects London St Pancras to the East Midlands, for the next eight years from today. Read more: Government signs controversial East Midlands contract with Abellio It said it was bringing £600m worth of investment to [...]
Caution over major purchases as uncertainty dents UK economy August 19, 2019 Consumer appetite for major purchases fell at the second-fastest rate in almost two years during August, as Brexit uncertainty and fears of an economic slowdown held back spending. IHS Markit’s monthly household finance index dipped to a three-month low after reporting the second-sharpest drop in demand for major purchases since September 2017. Read more: Retailers [...]
Wealth manager Tilney confirms Smith & Williamson merger talks August 19, 2019 Tilney has confirmed that it is in merger talks with rival Smith & Williamson, following reports of a potential tie-up between the two private wealth managers. Tilney confirmed it is in talks with Smith & Williamson “about a potential combination of our businesses” in a statement this morning. A merger would create a firm with [...]