Pressure on Dominic Cummings to quit after reports he broke lockdown rules to visit parents May 23, 2020 British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s closest adviser, Dominic Cummings, travelled 250 miles from his London home after showing symptoms of coronavirus, breaking the government’s lockdown rules, the Guardian and Mirror newspapers reported on Friday. Cummings, a polarising figure in Britain since he masterminded the successful campaign to leave the European Union in 2016, travelled to [...]
Appointment times and NHS discounts: How retailers plan to lure shoppers back after lockdown May 23, 2020 After more than two months of enforced closure during the UK coronavirus lockdown, retailers across England are preparing to potentially reopen to shoppers from 1 June. The high street will look different when retailers are allowed to open their doors. Social distancing signage will be in place, shop assistants will wear masks and a number [...]
Zoom Zoom Zoom: Why video-conferences are so draining May 22, 2020 When the annals of lockdown come to be written, we will find that the pandemic, like any other great crisis, has produced its own lexicon. You can see it already: self-isolating, social distancing, herd immunity. High up among these new usages will be the teleconferencing company Zoom. Full disclosure: I was an early adopter. The [...]
UK arrivals face £1,000 fine if they break two-week quarantine rule May 22, 2020 People arriving in the UK will be fined £1,000 if they refuse to obey a new two-week quarantine rule that will be rolled out to help halt the spread of coronavirus. Home secretary Priti Patel today confirmed that from 8 June anyone arriving in the country will be told to self-isolate for 14 days. Passengers [...]
Alibaba profit tumbles despite Covid-19 lockdown sales boost May 22, 2020 Alibaba today reported a plunge in profit during the fourth quarter as investment losses offset a surge in ecommerce sales during the coronavirus lockdown. The Chinese tech behemoth reported an 88 per cent decline in net income to 3.2bn yuan (£368m) in the three months to the end of March. The group said the decrease [...]
What are negative interest rates and will the UK turn to them? May 22, 2020 Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey this week said he has changed his mind on negative interest rates, saying the BoE is keeping them under “active review”. President Donald Trump has repeatedly made clear that he is a fan of negative rates, and wants the US to have them as it deals with the coronavirus [...]
Facebook shops for customers as e-commerce explodes May 22, 2020 | City Talk Do you remember when you needed a new item of clothing and headed to the high-street to browse the shops? Perhaps a few try-ons in different places before making your selection? Coronavirus means that’s obviously not possible at the moment, meaning a choice of either waiting until lockdown passes or going online. More and more [...]
Covid-19: the inescapable truths faced by investors May 22, 2020 | City Talk Investors will need to be more agile than ever as Covid-19 reinforces many of the trends driving the world economy prior to the outbreak. “At the beginning of the plague, when there was now no more hope but that the whole city would be visited; when all that had friends or estates in the country [...]
Marston’s and Carlsberg to unite brewing operations in £780m joint venture May 22, 2020 UK pub chain Marston’s share price skyrocketed today as it announced a plan to merge its brewing business with Carlsberg’s UK division in a £780m deal. The joint venture will value Marton’s Brewing Business at up to £580m and Carlsberg’s at £200m. But despite Marston’s superior valuation, the pub chain will only own 40 per [...]
UK coronavirus death toll rises by 351 May 22, 2020 A further 351 people have died from coronavirus in the UK, taking the total to 36,393. As of 9am today, more than 2.1m people have been tested, of whom 254,195 tested positive, according to the latest official figures. The number is slightly higher than yesterday, when 338 new deaths were recorded. However, it continues the [...]