Forget Brexit: The real drivers of corporate decision-making lie way beyond Britain’s borders May 3, 2016 There has, understandably, been a great deal of attention paid to the EU referendum debate, both in the UK and in many other economies with an interest in sterling. But while the referendum is certainly a highly significant constitutional event, and one which warrants the attention it has been receiving, it is just one of [...]
Failure to tackle the scourge of rising rents will undermine London’s startup renaissance May 3, 2016 Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales once said that “in the US, Washington is politics, LA is Hollywood, San Francisco is tech, New York is advertising and finance, but London is all of those things.” If anything, he is selling our city short; throw in the culture of the city that shaped creative geniuses such as Charles [...]
As London goes to the polls this week, which mayoral candidate would be better for business? May 3, 2016 Karren Brady, businesswoman and Conservative peer, says Zac. The next mayor has to be able to work with this government, above all to deliver the infrastructure to cope with a growing population. It’s a scandal, for example, that Bank station – probably the most important tube station in the financial world – gets closed once a [...]
Week ahead: Data and results set to keep UK investors busy as PMIs and supermarket results come thick and fast May 3, 2016 First quarter earnings season as well as a constant flow of economic data is set to keep investors busy all this week. The FTSE is coming off the back of a disappointing session after it closed down 80.51 points at 6241.89 on Friday following underwhelming results from some of the UK’s top banks. This week that [...]
Aim-listed Rose Petroleum raises cash for Cuba construction expansion May 3, 2016 Aim-listed natural resources company Rose Petroleum has raised £800,000 to fund expansion into Cuba. The company is looking for ways to bolster its business following the downturn in the oil price which has slumped by around 60 per cent since mid-2014. The company has held talks with a Cuban government owned company to process and manufacture [...]
One more survey that shows the living wage and Brexit fears are hitting hiring May 3, 2016 Brexit fears and the introduction of the national living wage are holding down pay and stopping firms from taking on staff, the latest jobs report from Adzuna suggests. The online recruiters said that advertised salaries for vacancies in the UK stood at £33,815 in March — down two per cent on last year — while [...]
EU referendum: Free market think tank says Britain should follow the Norway model after it votes for Brexit May 3, 2016 If the UK votes to leave the European Union it will have to become a member of the European Economic Area (EEA), a free market think tank has said today, in a challenge to Leave campaigners to present a viable idea of what the UK would look like after Brexit. The Adam Smith Institute (ASI) [...]
These journalists have been harassed, threatened, locked up and tortured for doing their jobs May 3, 2016 Jailed Azerbaijani reporter Khadija Ismailyova will today be awarded the Unesco/ Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize. On World Press Freedom Day, Amnesty International is shining a light on nine cases of journalists from across the world being harassed, threatened, locked up and tortured as part of efforts to muzzle free expression. Anna Neistat, Amnesty International’s [...]
Businesses rattled as latest survey points to an economic slowdown May 3, 2016 Business confidence has plummeted during the last few months due to severe volatility on the financial markets, the approaching EU referendum and the introduction of the national living wage, according to a new survey out today. The latest confidence monitor from the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) and Grant Thornton, fell [...]
Brexit concerns increasingly weighing on the minds of business owners May 3, 2016 Small and medium enterprise (SME) owners are becoming increasingly wary of a so-called Brexit, new research suggests. Some 81 per cent of respondents in the Smith and Willamson Enterprise Index felt a UK vote to leave the European Union would negatively affect their business, up 13 percentage points from June 2015. Read more: Government: Using phones in EU [...]