BT share price rises after EE merger “provisional” thumbs up from Competition and Markets Authority October 28, 2015 BT shares opened six per cent higher this morning, after the telecoms giant was given a provisional thumbs up from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) on its £12.5bn bid to buy EE. The regulator said the deal is "not expected to result in a substantial lessening of competition in any market in the UK". CMA's inquiry chair John Wotton [...]
EE’s Olaf Swantee plans to boost UK business by billions with push into business-to-business 4G October 28, 2015 EE is flirting more with the business-to-business sector, as the telecoms giant claims that better wifi could boost the UK’s companies by billions of pounds. The company’s chief executive Olaf Swantee said to City A.M. that this is an important growth sector for EE: We’ve shown what 4G can do for consumers, and now businesses [...]
Barclays confirms Jes Staley as new chief executive October 28, 2015 Barclays has confirmed Jes Staley as its new group chief executive. The bank said this morning that Staley will take up his new job on 1 December. Barclays chairman John McFarlane said: “Barclays is an incredibly important, broad and complex business. Appointing an individual with the business scope, seasoning and track record is a difficult challenge. "In [...]
FTSE extends falls after commodities drag down index – London Report October 28, 2015 Shares linked to the economic cycle gave up ground yesterday over concerns on growth in some countries and an oversupplied commodity market. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index fell 0.8 per cent to 6,365.27 points, its biggest daily loss in almost two weeks. Investors avoided strong bets ahead of the outcome of a two-day Federal Reserve [...]
Fixed rate mortgages growing in popularity as rates begin to rise – Mortgage Advice Bureau October 28, 2015 Fixed mortgage rates are growing in popularity, with 96 per cent of homebuyers opting for such products in September amid rising average rates, according to the latest national mortgage index from the Mortgage Advice Bureau (MAB). The average two year fixed rate rose from 2.68 per cent in August to 2.72 per cent in September, [...]
Consumer confidence hit its lowest level for 2015 in September – Lloyds Bank October 28, 2015 Consumer confidence dropped to the lowest level it has been in 2015 during September, the Lloyds Bank Spending Power Report revealed today. The proportion of people who feel comfortable about their household finances also dropped to the lowest it has been for the last five months, said the report. And the number of people [...]
Apple released its full-year results and broke records October 27, 2015 Here are the five facts you need to know about Apple's record results: Apple made more than $1bn a week in profits in the last 12 months. Apple's $234bn full year revenue dwarfs Ireland's GDP (of $227bn). And Greece's, which is $139bn. Perhaps it could lend a hand with some debt relief? And even oil-rich [...]
Tech stocks fired up on Nasdaq after Apple posts 22 per cent revenue jump October 27, 2015 Tech stocks dominated the top ten most active on Nasdaq in after hours trading, with Apple leading the way. After the group revealed that revenue had risen 22 per cent to $51.5bn (£33.7bn), shares in the tech giant rose by three per cent, before dropping back down. Microsoft was down by 0.15 per cent, while [...]
Apple Watch sales break-down remained elusive in Apple’s full year results October 27, 2015 Apple may have announced record revenues thanks in part to a 22 per cent increase in iPhone sales, but the much-vaunted Apple Watch did not get a mention in the results as many had hoped it would. The last quarter results over the summer were supposed to be the first chance to see how the [...]
Carpetright turnaround pays off as retailer rolls out higher sales October 27, 2015 Carpetright has posted a healthy rise in half-year sales as efforts to spruce up its stores to win over more customers via its website paid off. The floorings and beds specialist, said like-for-like sales rose by four per cent in the 25 weeks to 24 October, with total sales up 2.5 per cent. Five stores [...]