Neither March hares nor rabbits from hats – why expectations for the spring statement are low March 13, 2018 | City Talk If you were expecting any rabbits out of hats in today’s Spring Statement, both the Treasury and the Chancellor have been doing their level best to disabuse you of such a notion for some time. After last Autumn’s “Boring Budget” expect the “Stale Spring Statement”. Day-to-day public spending may finally be in surplus for the [...]
The world’s first listed energy storage investment fund, which works with firms such as Tesla, is floating in London to raise £100m March 13, 2018 Gore Street, the world’s first listed investment fund to focus solely on energy storage, has announced today it will float in London raising £100m. The fund will invest in facilities of lithium ion batteries, created by firms such as Tesla and NEC, which will help to capture the energy generated by renewable sources and even [...]
Canada finance minister: UK and Canada should aim for better trade deal than Ceta March 12, 2018 Canada and the UK should aim for a post-Brexit trade deal which is better than the current arrangement, according to finance minister Bill Morneau. Morneau said the deal agreed in late 2016 with the EU, the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (Ceta), will be the model for “replication” with the UK once it leaves, but [...]
The EU is about to flex its muscles with Britain and the US March 12, 2018 | City Talk Military historians the world over have observed the folly of trying to fight a war on two fronts. It didn’t work for Hitler, or for the great military tactician Napoleon. Yet this is the position the European Union (EU) now finds itself in. Not only must Brussels contend with a partner determined to break away, [...]
Broker AJ Bell aiming for £500m London IPO March 11, 2018 Broker and investment platform operator AJ Bell has appointed advisers to explore an initial public offering (IPO) on the London Stock Exchange which is expected to value the company at £500m. The float would include a retail share offer available exclusively to AJ Bell’s customers and is set to take place in late 2018 or [...]
There can be no winners in a trade war March 8, 2018 | City Talk Today, the European Central Bank’s (ECB) Governing Council meets to set monetary policy for the Eurozone. But any hopes there may have been among those of a more hawkish persuasion – particularly in Germany – that the ECB might tighten its monthly bond buying programme further have been all but crushed. Despite the Eurozone’s economy [...]
The economic impact of Brexit is just beginning to bite March 7, 2018 | City Talk If you needed any further evidence that Brexit and the uncertainty caused by the continued ambiguity of Britain’s negotiating position is beginning to have an economic impact, look no further than Ellesmere Port. The Vauxhall car factory that has been in operation since the 1960s faces possible closure after Brexit with the potential loss of [...]
Will one of these 26 companies joining Tech City’s Future Fifty become the new Zoopla or Just Eat? March 7, 2018 An AI-driven cybersecurity company, a fashion industry analytics business and a tech-based language teaching company are among the 26 UK startups that have been identified as potential future tech stars. Darktrace, Featurespace and Firefly are among the companies joining companies such as SpitfireAudio, Thread and Superawesome on Tech City’s Future Fifty programme. Future Fifty alumni [...]
The UK’s export economy is at its strongest point since 2000 March 7, 2018 UK exports are at their strongest position since 2000 despite threats posed by Brexit, a report by Heathrow Airport and the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) has found. Heathrow's export climate index tracks factors including the consumer confidence of the UK's main trade partners by their share of UK exports; effective exchange rate [...]
Italian coaliation will have as much stability as an elephant on a unicycle March 6, 2018 | City Talk For weeks, the Eurozone has been dogged by political uncertainty in two of the bloc’s largest economies, Germany and Italy. Monday brought a return to type, if not stability, in them both. The week began with the news that Germany’s political limbo was finally over, after members of the opposition Social Democrats (SPD) voted in [...]