Inside Amazon’s Black Friday operations hub: How the e-commerce giant prepares for its busiest day of the year November 29, 2019 Where could be a better place to witness the behind-the-scenes impact of Black Friday than at the heart of Amazon’s UK warehouse operations? Some of the credit – or perhaps, blame – for the annual shopping event’s popularity in Britain surely lies with the US e-commerce giant. The fulfilment centre – which is the size [...]
Reach share price jumps as it pulls out of race to buy JPI Media titles November 29, 2019 Shares in publishing group Reach jumped as much as 12 per cent this morning after it said it has pulled out of the race to acquire titles from i newspaper owner JPI Media. Reach, which publishes the Daily Mirror, announced in July that it was in talks over a potential takeover of some of JPI’s [...]
Thames Water trickles to a loss on financing costs November 29, 2019 Thames Water said today it had swung to a loss in the first-half of the year, blaming increased financing costs. The company announced a loss before tax of £23.2m for the six months ended 30 September, which it said was driven by a “revaluation of hedging instruments to current market prices”. Read more: Water giants [...]
Channel 4 replaces Boris Johnson with ice sculpture in climate debate November 29, 2019 The Conservatives have become engulfed in a standoff with Channel 4 after the broadcaster “empty chaired” Prime Minister Boris Johnson during its climate debate last night. The Tory party has written to Ofcom to complain that Channel 4’s decision to replace Johnson with an ice sculpture was a “provocative partisan stunt”. Read more: Boris Johnson [...]
Npower announces major restructuring which could cost 4,500 jobs November 29, 2019 Struggling energy firm Npower today announced a restructuring of its UK business that could cost thousands of jobs. Unions sources said the shake-up could lead to 4,500 UK job losses and the closure of a number of call centres, the Mirror reported. Yesterday, Npower reported that it had lost 261,000 customers in the third quarter, [...]
HSBC and Santander must repay over £8m in overdraft fees November 29, 2019 HSBC and Santander must refund customers to the tune of millions of pounds after failing to text customers who fell into unarranged overdrafts. HSBC twice broke a legal requirement to text customers before charging them for falling into an overdraft and is refunding £8m to 115,754 customers. Read more: TSB branch closures: Which will close [...]
Fancy a Christmas tipple? Here are London’s best-dressed festive bars and hotels November 29, 2019 Since writing this column my bah humbug feeling about the run-up to Christmas has been transformed. Now that I am blissfully untouched by Christmas jingles bombarding me from shops and TV (thanks, internet), Christmas cheer is all around me as London slowly lights up. We are spoilt for choice in terms of where to gather, [...]
Safe as houses? Our electoral map is fuelling voter apathy November 29, 2019 With less than two weeks to go until the country heads to the polls, I have personally encountered precisely one attempt to garner my vote, in the form of a leaflet from my local Green candidate. While somewhat ironic given the party’s mission to protect the environment, this was immensely welcome. The other parties, it [...]
Investors should restrict ire over pay deals November 29, 2019 Talk about picking your moment. Provoking a pay row with your shareholders in the middle of a General Election campaign in which the Labour party has zeroed in on income inequality looks crass — so Bovis Homes Group’s executives shouldn’t be surprised if a few arrows are fired in their direction by would-be MPs early [...]
Opinion: Reservation agreements can take the stress out of selling your home November 29, 2019 Reservation agreements – the practice of buyers and sometimes sellers paying a fee to show their commitment to buying a property prior to exchange – are having their moment in the spotlight as the government is on the cusp of launching its official trial. Early in the new year, it will ask selected estate agents [...]