Microsoft soars past $100bn revenue mark, boosted by the power of the Cloud | City A.M. July 19, 2018 Software and PC giant Microsoft had its best year ever in 2018, beating analyst estimates to score $110.4bn (£85.1bn) in revenue at a year-on-year increase of 14 per cent. It reported $30.1bn in revenue for its fourth quarter, beating already high consumer estimates of $29.17bn. Diluted earnings per share came in at $1.15 for the [...]
Cisco channels $100m into the UK’s artificial intelligence tech sector | City A.M. July 19, 2018 Global telecoms tech firm Cisco has announced it will be investing $100m (£76.8m) into digital innovation in the UK, with a focus artificial intelligence, data and self-driving cars. Backed by Prime Minister Theresa May and digital secretary Jeremy Wright to run in tandem to the government’s industrial strategy, Cisco will partner with University College London [...]
A no-deal Brexit will harm the EU and the UK, warns the IMF | City A.M. July 19, 2018 The European Union will not be immune to the economic damage caused by a no-deal Brexit, according to a new report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) released today. In its latest annual health check of the euro area, the Washington-based IMF warned that the EU’s real GDP could fall by as much as 1.5 [...]
Royal Mail suffers brutal investor revolt over pay deal for new chief exec | City A.M. July 19, 2018 ROYAL Mail found itself on the end of a brutal shareholder revolt yesterday as investors voted down a pay deal for its incoming chief executive. More than 70 per cent of votes cast by shareholders opposed a resolution on the company’s remuneration report. Switzerland-based Rico Back will receive a basic salary of £640,000, which is [...]
City must be “alive” to Brexit-induced split between domestic and international businesses after mutual recognition dropped: City of London | City A.M. July 19, 2018 The City of London Corporation has suggested Brexit may drive a wedge between domestic financial firms and international ones. Catherine McGuiness, policy chair, this morning hinted at as split as she warned that the financial sector should expect “turbulence over the next few months, and a greater variety of views from the sector than we [...]
FCA: Banks should prepare for no deal | City A.M. July 19, 2018 Banks should start preparing for a hard Brexit as the deadline to the UK’s withdrawal from the EU looms large, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said. With just eight months until Brexit day – 29 March 2019 – the City’s watchdog has added its voice to the chorus of groups urging businesses to step [...]
Chinese tech giant Alibaba makes $1.43bn investment in digital advertising firm Focus Media | City A.M. July 19, 2018 Chinese tech group Alibaba has snapped up a minority stake in digital advertising firm Focus Media in a deal worth $1.43bn (£1.1bn). In a statement, the company said it would buy a 6.62 per cent in the firm, and could increase its stake by five per cent in the next year. Alibaba will also invest [...]
Luxury car maker Aston Martin has unveiled a flying car dubbed the ‘sports car for the skies’ | City A.M. July 19, 2018 Luxury fast-car manufacturer Aston Martin has unveiled a futuristic flying vehicle that has been dubbed the “sports car for the skies”. The three-seater hybrid electric vehicle was announced yesterday at the Farnborough Airshow, in a bid to compete with giants like Google and Uber in the race to revolutionise commercial air travel. Formally named the [...]
Banking culture needs to adapt as the algorithms learn to trade | City A.M. July 19, 2018 Financial markets never sleep. The trade in financial instruments has long been a global marketplace, operating round the clock. But increasingly, market continuity is maintained not only by human intervention, but also by algorithmic tools. This has brought with it huge client benefits: executing trades at an unprecedented pace and volume, lowering costs, increasing accuracy, [...]
Time to put your phone down and ask Alexa instead | City A.M. July 19, 2018 A decade ago, if you asked anybody in the customer service game how consumers will interact with their favourite brands in the future, the lion’s share would have told you that actually having to speak to someone is going be unnecessary and uncommon – if not totally extinct. Now it’s becoming clear that the shift [...]