Ofcom warns BT that internet status quo is likely to change as Vodafone, TalkTalk and Sky pile on the pressure December 1, 2015 OFCOM yesterday said Britain is doing well in rolling out superfast broadband compared with other major European economies, yet it added that the status quo in the industry is likely to be altered. Service providers, such as TalkTalk and Sky, have demanded that Openreach, which provides the infrastructure connecting people to the internet, be spun [...]
Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan to donate 99 per cent of their shares to “advance human potential and promote equality” December 1, 2015 Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan have today revealed that they plan to donate almost all of their shares in Facebook to good causes over their lifetimes. In a letter to his newborn daughter posted on the social media website, Zuckerberg said that he and Chan would be giving away 99 per cent [...]
Bank of England to act if needed on the buy-to-let market December 1, 2015 The Bank of England (BoE) has said it’s ready to act if it feels the booming buy-to-let mortgage market is getting out of control. Threadneedle Street’s Prudential Regulation Authority said it was reviewing banks’ lending criteria. The market for buy-to-let mortgages has ballooned 10 per cent in the first nine months of this year. Although there [...]
Union mulls next move over Night Tube and worker pay following a meeting of representatives December 1, 2015 There could be further delays down the line for London's Night Tube, as RMT's general secretary Mick Cash has today revealed that representatives from the union were not satisfied with London Underground's latest offer on pay and conditions. Cash said: "The feedback from the meeting is that the offer has not matched up to the expectations of our [...]
Libor scandal trader Tom Hayes’s lawyer tells Court of Appeal he was denied a fair trial in an appeal against the 14-year sentence on eight charges of conspiracy to defraud December 1, 2015 Tom Hayes’s name was back in court again today, as his lawyers argued to the Court of Appeal that the former trader was denied a fair trial. According to Reuters, the legal team for Hayes, who was found guilty of eight charges of conspiracy to defraud and sentenced in August to 14 years in jail [...]
Morrisons supermarket reportedly set to exit the FTSE 100 index December 1, 2015 Struggling supermarket Morrisons will reportedly be booted out of the FTSE 100 index tomorrow as part of its quarterly shake up. The Bradford based company has been nudging the bottom of the table for the last 12 months and just managed to dodge relegation in the last reshuffle. Latest update: Morrisons is kicked out of the FTSE [...]
Croydon poised for 63 per cent surge in office rents by 2017 as the borough undergoes a revival December 1, 2015 Croydon office rents are set to surge by 63 per cent in the next two years, new research shows, as the south London borough undergoes a revival and new schemes come onto the market. According to Savills, rents will rise from £24.50 per sq ft to £40 per sq ft (£430 per sq m), putting Croydon [...]
At the close: FTSE 100 up on banks following the Bank of England stress tests December 1, 2015 The FTSE 100 closed up today, led higher by banks after five of seven banks that took part in the Bank of England's stress tests passed. The UK's top blue-chip index rose 0.62 per cent, to 6,395 points. Five participating banks – Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group, Santander UK and the Nationwide building society – all passed [...]
Topps Tiles profits rise by a fifth as homeowners go on shopping spree December 1, 2015 Topps Tiles said profits jumped by a fifth last year, thanks to a surge in people doing up their homes and the retailer’s own efforts to modernise its brand and its stores. The FTSE 250 retailer reported a 19.3 per cent jump in pre-tax profits to £20.4m in the year to 3 October. Revenue rose [...]
Moody’s says the outlook for 2016 is stable despite China slowdown and commodities and oil rout December 1, 2015 Despite the ongoing commodities route, falling oil prices and Chinese slowdown, Moody's is optimistic, and thinks the outlook in Europe is stable for 2016. Non-financial companies in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) can look forward to increased consumer confidence, solid market liquidity, low default rates, and "sustained" though "slow" growth of around two per cent in Europe. The ratings agency [...]