Senior Tories tell government to ‘rule out’ Huawei from 5G plans February 8, 2020 A number of senior Conservatives including four ex-cabinet ministers have written a letter to Tory MPs to raise concerns about the decision to give Huawei a role in the UK’s 5G network. Sir Iain Duncan Smith, Owen Paterson, David Davis, Damian Green, Tobias Ellwood and Bob Seely, said they “working to find a better solution” [...]
Apple fined for slowing down old iPhones February 8, 2020 Apple has been fined 25m euros (£21m) for deliberating slowing down its older iPhone models and not making customers aware. The fine, which was imposed by France’s competition and fraud watchdog DGCCRF, was for failing to make this clear to consumers. Apple admitted in 2017 that it slowed down some of its iPhones but only [...]
Top economist Sir Charlie Bean warns UK productivity crisis threatens capitalism February 8, 2020 The threat of Brexit to the economy is “small beer” compared to the UK’s decade-long productivity crisis, which could undermine consent for British capitalism, one of the country’s top economists has warned. In an interview with City A.M., former Bank of England deputy governor Sir Charlie Bean said the failure of productivity to meaningfully grow [...]
The financial services sector will be key as we chart a new course on the world stage February 8, 2020 The UK’s financial services sector has charted a pragmatic course since the EU Referendum, and recent figures show that it continues to flourish. Indeed, research from Innovate Finance revealed how investment in the UK’s fintech sector reached a record high of nearly $5bn in 2019, with industry growth far outstripping that of the US, China, [...]
What’s happened to GBP/EUR this week? February 7, 2020 | City Talk Sterling was on the back foot at the beginning of this week, but that wasn’t the whole story… After a positive end to last week thanks to the Bank of England holding interest rates, sterling was on the back foot at the beginning of this week due to the Prime Minister’s comments about the Brexit [...]
Asian currencies hit by coronavirus outbreak February 7, 2020 | City Talk While concern over the economic impact of the coronavirus appears to be centred on China, Japan is not immune to the ramifications of the disease. SGD: Ahead of a statement from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the Singapore dollar fell to a four-month low. This came after a period of strength when it has [...]
Train passengers missing millions in compensation, says transport watchdog February 7, 2020 There is millions of pounds in Delay Repay compensation unclaimed according to a survey by Transport Focus. The rail watchdog claims just 31 per cent of passengers say they are alerted by train operators that they are entitled to compensation when delayed. Transport Focus surveyed 2,000 customers to see how many were made aware of [...]
Ericsson pulls out of MWC 2020 over coronavirus fears February 7, 2020 Ericsson has decided to pull out of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2020 in Barcelona due to the risk posed by the coronavirus outbreak. It is a huge blow for the largest telecoms trade show of the year with one of the biggest exhibitors pulling out just two weeks before it was due to begin. [...]
UK appoints first female US ambassador February 7, 2020 The government has appointed a new US ambassador after the last person to hold the post quit in the wake of leaked messages about President Donald Trump. Dame Karen Pierce will become the new UK ambassador to the US at a crucial time – with Trump reported to have been “livid” about Prime Minister Boris [...]
Credit Suisse chief executive Tidjane Thiam ousted in wake of spying scandal February 7, 2020 Credit Suisse chief executive Tidjane Thiam has stepped down from his role following a bitter power struggle which was sparked by a lurid spying scandal that erupted in September. Thiam’s departure – the board said it had “unanimously accepted” his resignation today – came despite powerful investors only this week backing the chief executive and [...]