First dedicated COVID vaccination site opens in Square Mile April 1, 2021 | City Talk The City of London Corporation is delighted to welcome the first, dedicated COVID vaccination site in the Square Mile. The Boots pharmacy site is located at 120 Fleet Street and will begin vaccinating patients from Friday 2 April. It will support the NHS to deliver COVID vaccinations to yet more City residents and City workers, [...]
UK battery firm Britishvolt eyes US SPAC deal April 1, 2021 Britishvolt, the developer of a giant battery factory in the UK, is considering going public and eyeing options in the US. The company has appointed Barclays and Guggenheim Capital to explore an IPO which could include a merger with a special acquisition purpose company. SPACs are the latest phenomenon to grip global equity markets with [...]
US jobless claims rise again despite signs of recovery April 1, 2021 New claims for unemployment benefits in the US rose unexpectedly despite the vaccine rollout and a huge fiscal support driving market recovery. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits came in at 719,000, according to the Labor Department. Last week claims fell to 684,000, their lowest levels since the start of the pandemic. While the number [...]
Top of the shops: Asos sales growth set to continue due to lockdown gains April 1, 2021 Asos is set to report a further jump in earnings and sales as continuing lockdown restrictions have kept consumers shopping online. Revenue is expected to jump 22 per cent to around £1.95bn when it updates shareholders on its trading performance for the half year to February. Earnings are also expected to surge 135 per cent [...]
EU warns ‘zero’ Covid vaccines will be shipped to UK unless Astrazeneca meets targets April 1, 2021 Brussels has warned that “zero” Covid vaccines made in the bloc will be exported to the UK unless Astrazeneca meets its dose delivery commitments with the EU. Thierry Breton, the EU’s internal market commissioner, hinted at the bloc’s plans to use European-made vaccines as bargaining power with Astrazeneca in an ongoing dispute about vaccine shortages [...]
Boris Johnson ‘very hopeful’ government can bail out Liberty Steel April 1, 2021 Boris Johnson has said today that he is “very hopeful” the government will be able to bail out ailing Liberty Steel, saying it “would be crazy” for the government not to buy British steel post-Brexit. The Prime Minister said on a trip to Middlesbrough today that business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng had been in “daily contact” [...]
London Stock Exchange Group faces investor revolt over CEO’s pay April 1, 2021 The London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) is facing a backlash from investors after deciding to hike its chief executive’s salary by more than £200,000. Some of the company’s biggest investors plan to vote against its remuneration report when it holds its annual meeting later this month, Sky News first reported. The anger centres on the [...]
Next pauses Myanmar production after year of strong online sales April 1, 2021 Next has paused its production orders from Myanmar, it’s boss said today, as the military coup grows more deadly. “We’re not placing any more orders at the moment, that is a big step,” CEO Simon Wolfson told Reuters. “Most of the stock that we were sourcing from Myanmar…we have alternatives in place already for that [...]
Missed the spark: Volkswagen share price dips following ‘Voltswagen’ April Fool’s joke April 1, 2021 Volkswagen’s share price fell today after the American arm of the company issued a false announcement claiming it was changing its name to ‘Voltswagen of America’. The stunt, which came just ahead of April Fool’s Day, was meant to call attention to its electric vehicle efforts. But the joke fell flat on social media, with [...]
Former Savile Row police station sold to European developer for £50m April 1, 2021 European real estate firm CPI Property Group has bought a former police station in Savile Row, in a deal that is thought to be worth around £50m. The firm, which owns property in Berlin, Prague and Warsaw, said the recently decommissioned West End Central Police Station at 27 Savile Row has been “acquired as a [...]