From food poisoning to faulty washing machines, here are the top 10 excuses workers use to call in sick June 14, 2016 Don't pretend you haven't done it. It is a rite of passage that an employee will use at least one poor excuse in their career to get out of work, but new research has found that Britons lack creativity when pulling a sickie. With the live European Championships action on TV decimating the Square Mile's office [...]
The pound is feeling the pressure of the latest Brexit polls June 14, 2016 Sterling has continued its sharp decline this morning as another set of opinion polls showed the Leave side pulling ahead with just nine days to go until the EU referendum. The pound has lost 1.1 per cent against the US dollar so far today to stand at $1.4117 in early afternoon trading – a two-month low. It also fell against [...]
Scrapping tax havens would be unrealistic, experts tell MPs June 14, 2016 It would be unrealistic to think low corporation tax jurisdictions, or so-called tax havens, could be eradicated, the Treasury committee was told today. Responding to a question from the committee on whether tax havens are a relic, Steve Edge, a tax partner at Slaughter and May, pointed out that different jurisdictions had different "packages" on what they could offer businesses. He added [...]
Drinkers raise a glass to posh booze as premium spirits and wine sales soar worldwide June 14, 2016 Posh booze has become the order of the day for the world's drinkers, who are clearly after quality not quantity when it comes to their tipples. Worldwide, the premium-and-above spirits market grew five per cent in 2015, equivalent to 6.7m nine-litre cases on the 2014 total, according to the alcohol analysis firm IWSR's 2016 database. The most [...]
Fees soar for legal eagles, as law firms reveal they are modestly optimistic about their future June 14, 2016 Lawyers had reason to celebrate today, after a report revealed that fees at the top 100 law firms rose by 5.4 per cent in the year to April. The report by professional services firm Deloitte revealed that fee income in the last quarter of the financial year increased by an average of six per cent year-on-year. Firms are [...]
Before the bell: What you need to know before the US market open June 14, 2016 Brexit fears are dragging down markets and Germany's 10-year bond yield has turned negative. Here's what you need to know before the market open at 14:30 London time. US futures are pointing down again today, suggesting the bad start to the week is going to continue. The S&P is off by 0.22 per cent. The Nasdaq is 0.26 [...]
Go-Ahead shares price slumps after Thameslink profit warning June 14, 2016 Go-Ahead's share price has slumped over 16 per cent after it announced profits expected from Thameslink would be sharply less than expected. In a trading update, Go-Ahead said the cost of extra investment in Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) would halve its expected profit margins over the contract's lifetime. It said that the expected profit margin is [...]
EU referendum: Brexit camp is storming ahead with just over one week to go June 14, 2016 With just over one week to go the Leave campaign has stormed ahead in the latest polling. The Brexit camp now has 49 per cent of the vote, compared to Remain's 48 per cent among those definite to vote in the latest ORB poll. It's the first time the Leave side has been ahead since [...]
Fintech boom means Brexit won’t hurt exports June 14, 2016 Exporting can be a powerful driver of business growth, and small and medium-sized enterprises that sell overseas often find themselves more successful in their domestic market as a result of what they learn from exporting. So, I was disheartened to see at a recent seminar hosted by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, that only around 20 per [...]