Canadian miner Lucara finds biggest diamond in more than a century in Botswana November 19, 2015 The biggest diamond in more than 100 years has been unearthed by a small Canadian mining company at a mine in Botswana. The 1,111 carat stone, which is second in size only to the Cullinan diamond in the Crown Jewels, was discovered by Lucara at its Karowe mine in north-central Botswana. The gem measures 65 mm by 56mm by 40mm. [...]
These are the top 10 tech freelancers businesses are desperate to get their hands on November 19, 2015 With London’s tech sector booming, fast-growing new companies snapping at the heels of monolithic incumbents and nearly every business looking to ramp up its use of tech, it’s no wonder the demand for computer whizz kids is booming. The number of tech projects listed on freelancer.com, a jobs site, climbed four per cent in the three [...]
Where’s the hardest place in England and Wales to get on the housing ladder? November 19, 2015 By now we’ve all heard – and heard again – how hard it is to get on the housing ladder. In the capital alone – where a generation has been priced out of the property market – one organisation has already said people should “just move out of London“. But just where in the country is it [...]
As Christmas adverts battle it out, Google Android beats Disney, Budweiser, John Lewis, Sainsbury’s and Comic Relief to become the most shared advert of 2015 November 19, 2015 John Lewis and Sainsbury's might be battling it out over who will take the number one spot for this year's Christmas advert, but the two retailers are barely on the radar when it comes to the most popular advert of the year so far. That honour goes to Google Android's Friends Furever campaign, featuring some surprising animal friendships. [...]
The great investment debate: Should you put your money in active or passive funds? November 19, 2015 The great investment debate typically pits passively managed funds against their actively managed counterparts. Passively managed funds give investors low-cost risk exposure without the added worry of assessing a fund manager's skills, while actively managed funds come with fees, which eat into their overall returns, but allowing fund managers to trade through market volatility to weather storms like [...]
HBOS report: How did HBOS collapse? Here’s a timeline showing what happened in the run-up to its fall November 19, 2015 Get ready for the resurgence of the phrase "too big to fail": a Bank of England investigation into the collapse of HBOS is to be published today, and politicians are limbering up for some serious finger pointing. It's the second report into the collapse of the bank, which was rescued by Lloyds TSB and the government in 2008. [...]
Black Friday 2015 UK: Sharp drop in retail sales in October as shoppers gear up for the mega deals day and Cyber Monday November 19, 2015 UK retail sales dropped steeply in October as the hype surrounding the Rugby World Cup died down and shoppers kept cash aside to snap up some Black Friday bargains on the 27th November. The amount spent at retailers dropped 0.7 per cent on the month while the volume of goods bought was down 0.6 per cent, according to [...]
David Cameron is getting his own £10m Air Force One-style prime ministerial plane November 19, 2015 David Cameron is emulating the president of the US with his very own jet dubbed a "budget" version of Air Force One, and it comes with a £10m price tag. The Prime Minister – and other senior ministers – will now have access to a converted RAF jet to travel privately to official engagements. The Queen and fellow members [...]
Gatwick Airport makes a case for expansion as passenger numbers leap November 19, 2015 Gatwick Airport, the plucky underdog of British airports, came out fighting in its first-half results. The figures Revenues rose 5.2 per cent to £411.8m in the six months to the end of September, pushing earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation up 6.8 per cent to £241m. Meanwhile, profit before tax hit £135.2m. Gatwick said it had been the busiest six months in its [...]