It’s not cutting-edge AI we should feel anxious about, but mediocre automation May 8, 2019 If there were a betting market in future winners of the Nobel prize in economics, MIT’s Daniel Acemoglu would be at pretty short odds. His highly innovative work has already won him a string of prizes. So his research is always worth following – especially when he challenges the conventional wisdom, as in his paper [...]
DEBATE: Was Gordon Brown right to sell off the government’s gold reserves 20 years ago? May 8, 2019 Was Gordon Brown right to sell off the government’s gold reserves 20 years ago? Tim Focas, director of financial services for Westminster think tank Parliament Street, says YES. While Gordon Brown could have sold at a better price, for the vast majority of governments across established economies, there is no real point to holding gold. [...]
Gett eyes 2020 flotation and profitability as it raises $200m at a $1.5bn valuation May 8, 2019 Taxi-hailing firm Gett said it has raised $200m (£153m) in additional funding yesterday, with a flotation on the cards “as soon as the first quarter of 2020”. It added it is on track to become operationally profitable globally by the fourth quarter of this year, including its US operation. Read more: Uber drivers to stage [...]
Warm-weather pub trips boost tepid consumer spending growth in April May 8, 2019 Consumer spending growth slowed in April but was boosted by last month’s sunshine, resulting in double-digit growth in the amount spent at restaurants and pubs, according to the latest data from Barclaycard. Read more: Confidence hits new low but spending climbs amid sunny weather Overall consumer spending grew 2.5 per cent in April compared to [...]
UK’s biggest companies pull away as profits for rest of pack plunge May 8, 2019 Average profits at the UK’s 40 biggest companies rose by 11 per cent in the first quarter of the year while those outside the group saw a fall of 18 per cent, new analysis has shown, laying bare a stark division in the fortunes of British companies. Read more: 'Zombie firms' dragging down UK economy, [...]
EU slashes its forecast for German growth as it predicts Eurozone slowdown May 7, 2019 The European Union yesterday halved its growth prediction for the German economy as it forecasted lower growth for the Eurozone as a whole, laying bare the extent of the bloc’s economic challenges before a leaders’ summit in Romania this week. Read more: ‘Wake-up call’: Germany downgrades 2019 growth forecast Official forecasts, released by the European Commission [...]
European stocks continue downward slide as US-China trade tensions flare May 7, 2019 The FTSE 100 hit a one-month low today as European stocks continued to be dragged down by the ramping up of trade tensions between the US and China. Read more: Global markets in tailspin after Trump threatens huge China tariff rise In the first trading done since the bank holiday weekend, the UK benchmark fell [...]
London Metals Exchange eyes China expansion with new warehouse plans May 7, 2019 The London Metal Exchange (LME) is in talks with the government of Guangdong province in southern China to expand its warehousing operations into the country, its parent company said today. Read more: London miner Central Asia Metals looks for acquisitions in copper space The plan would see the Hong Kong stock exchange (HKEX), which owns [...]
Foreign flops at Purplebricks and Domino’s hit shares May 7, 2019 | City Talk International expansion is not as easy as it looks – just ask the boards of Purplebricks and Domino’s. Michael Bruce, found and chief executive of Purplebricks, is stepping down after a torrid year for the company. COO Vic Darvey is stepping into the breach. That means we’ve seen the poor performance recently claim 3 CEOs [...]
This series of UK politics feels suspiciously like daytime TV May 7, 2019 Last week’s local elections were a democratic amuse bouche. A mere mouthful of popular sentiment, sending a message to the political elite that an offering meant to delight the taste buds has fallen as flat as a soggy souffle. Like a daytime TV rerun of MasterChef, it involved lots of familiar names and tried but [...]