Map: UK house prices are still below 2007 peak in Wales, the North and southern Scotland – but have soared past them in London, Bristol, York and Manchester October 16, 2015 London’s house prices may have surged well beyond the prices of the last property boom, but that’s hardly true of the whole country. Looking at average house prices today against what they were eight years ago shows prices are still below their 2007 peak in about half the country. The map of England, Scotland and [...]
John Lewis reveals how we shop, live and look in 2015: Spiralising and the Nutribullet took over while we ditched thongs, bookcases and formal dining October 16, 2015 When looking back at 2015, how will the year be remembered? Plenty of scandals, both corporate and political, have kept us busy in the news department, but what about when we hit the shops? Middle England's favourite department store John Lewis has released its annual state of the nation report, revealing the five items that [...]
The Co-operative Bank wants to spend £1m growing the UK’s co-operative sector October 16, 2015 It may still be shaking off the effects of a £1.5bn black hole in its balance sheet, but The Co-operative Bank is already looking to the future, after it announced plans for a £1m boost to the UK's co-operative sector. In a statement today, it said it had agreed a three-year partnership with Co-operatives UK [...]
What emissions crisis? European new car registrations jumped in September – and people were desperate for Volkswagens October 16, 2015 While politicians and those at the top of Volkswagen wring their hands in anguish over the emissions cheating scandal, it turns out the rest of Europe just sort of shrugged and got on with it, after new figures showed the number of new VWs registered in Europe jumped 8.3 per cent in September. Lest we forget, [...]
Nestle share price falls after disappointing sales slashing growth forecast October 16, 2015 Nestle has cut its growth forecast for 2015 as “exceptional events” kept the company from meeting its sales targets. The figures Organic sales growth was up 4.2 per cent year-on-year for the first nine months, against forecasts of 4.7 per cent. The company reported sales of £44bn for the period, weighed down 6.9 per cent [...]
Ministers, companies and unions descend on Rotherham for UK steel crisis summit October 16, 2015 Ministers, representatives of producers and unions have descended on Rotherham for a crisis meeting over the UK's remaining steel industry. The summit comes a day after the final closure of the SSI steelworks in Redcar, announced last month, which caused the loss of 1,700 jobs. The government said today's summit will address the "challenging conditions" facing the market, after [...]
UK house prices: London rents actually fell in the last quarter (but they are still higher than this time last year), according to HomeLet October 16, 2015 Good news for London's renters; bad news for the capital's buy-to-let investors: the average rent of a property in Greater London has fallen for the first time since February. Average rents in the wider region fell by 0.2 per cent in the three months to September, according to HomeLet. That doesn't mean it's cheap: the average [...]
London property prices: City rents rocketing as estate agent warns the only way is up October 16, 2015 London rents reached a record high in September after rising 11.6 per cent over the last year, according to new figures released this morning, with agents warning that the only foreseeable trend is an upward one. Rental price growth in the capital was far higher in September than the UK average of 6.3 per cent, the [...]
Treasury’s U-turn plugs brain drain fears: City bosses welcome “reverse burden of proof” retreat October 16, 2015 City bosses have welcomed the Treasury’s U-turn on controversial plans for a so-called “reverse burden of proof” for senior bankers, saying that the reversal will help the Square Mile retain and attract top talent. A leading City head-hunter told City A.M. that the Treasury’s initial proposals, which would have required bankers to prove they were unaware [...]
Could Crossrail be creating skills shortages in parts of Britain? Recruiter Randstad thinks so October 16, 2015 Crossrail could be to blame for skills shortages in certain parts of Britain, according to a new report out today from Randstad CPE, the specialist recruiter. Randstad says that more than a quarter of Crossrail’s workforce is drawn from regions more than 30 miles away from the project, with one in 20 moving more than [...]