TP Icap to move staff out of the City in a no-deal Brexit as it awaits Paris approval March 19, 2019 The world’s largest interdealer broker TP Icap has revealed plans to move staff out of the City in the event of a no-deal Brexit. The brokerage giant said its UK desk’s ability to continue to provide business for EU clients would be under threat if Britain leaves the EU without a deal later this month. [...]
Business investment could take years to bounce back from Brexit, says top economist March 19, 2019 One of Britain’s top economists has said the UK's slowdown in business investment is attributable to Brexit and warned that it may only bounce back gradually over several years. Yet Brexit has only played a small part in Britain’s sluggish productivity growth, Sir Charlie Bean, speaking as a committee member of the Office for Budget [...]
Shares in FTSE 250 miner Ferrexpo plunge after it delays its financial results amid Ukrainian charity probe March 19, 2019 Shares in iron ore miner Ferrexpo fell nearly 10 per cent today after it said it was delaying its 2018 financial results amid a probe into its relationship with a Ukrainian charity. The miner established an independent review committee (IRC) in February to investigate donations it had made to Ukrainian charity Blooming Land. Read more: Iron miner [...]
Gold, the Federal Reserve, and the dollar – what’s driving up precious metal prices? March 19, 2019 Gold has been making a comeback. After a long period with little activity last year, the precious metal’s value has risen as stock markets have struggled and fallen. Combine the volatility of equities with the increase in geopolitical fears, and many investors are re-evaluating whether to increase the amount of gold in their portfolios. The [...]
Employment rate jumps to record high as labour market shrugs off Brexit concerns March 19, 2019 The UK’s employment rate soared to a new record high today and unemployment fell to a fresh low as the labour market shrugged off Brexit concerns. The employment rate hit 76.1 per cent for November 2018 to January 2019, Office for National Statistics data revealed today, to a new record of 32.7m people – 473,000 higher [...]
Wood Group slashes losses as Amec Foster Wheeler merger drives contract wins March 19, 2019 Energy services firm Wood Group narrowed its losses and posted a surge in revenues last year as its takeover of Amec Foster Wheeler began to pay off. Read more: Wood Group warns of impact of future oil market volatility The figures Wood Group's revenues soared 79 per cent to $11bn (£8.3bn) in the year to the [...]
We don’t need to break up big tech to make a better internet – we just need more competition March 19, 2019 Last week saw the release of the government-commissioned Furman Review into digital competition. The commission, chaired by former Obama administration chief economic adviser Jason Furman, found that Google, Amazon, and Facebook don’t face enough competition. This shouldn’t come as a surprise, given the recent attention on tech giants’ business models by governments across the world. [...]
Corbyn fails yet again to grasp the magic of competitive markets March 19, 2019 It is not the worst thing that Jeremy Corbyn has ever said. But it’s certainly one of the most revealing. A year ago, the Labour leader was explaining why he wanted to leave Europe’s Single Market while staying in the customs union – a stance memorably described by my fellow think tanker Kristian Niemietz as [...]
London climbs world’s most expensive cities ranking March 19, 2019 London has become a dearer place to live in the last year, causing it to climb eight places in the world’s most expensive city list, according to the latest worldwide cost of living survey. After dropping considerably last year the capital is now the world’s 22nd most expensive city to live in, far behind its [...]
The UK government should take inspiration from an unlikely source when writing its post-Brexit migration plan March 19, 2019 Another day, another chance for UK politics to reach hitherto unimaginable levels of farce. But while Downing Street reels over speaker John Bercow's characteristically dramatic intervention, it's worth remembering that the government is capable of making a complete mess of many things – not just Brexit. Take immigration, for example. We have a Prime Minister who [...]