Jersey Oil & Gas hails ‘transformational’ North Sea oil field award July 22, 2019 Jersey Oil & Gas, an independent drilling company, was today awarded the right to operate North Sea oil fields containing more than 100m barrels of discovered oil. The company’s shares rocketed 136 per cent today as it hailed the award as the “most significant event for JOG [Jersey Oil & Gas] since its inception”. Read [...]
Onecom bags £100m in funding as it eyes up future acquisitions July 22, 2019 UK telecoms firm Onecom has secured £100m to help fund future acquisitions as it looks to beef up its presence across the country. The independent business telecoms provider said it has raised the funds from private equity firm LDC and credit funds managed by an affiliate of US asset manager Ares. Read more: Vodafone taps [...]
Sterling falls as risk of no-deal Brexit rises ahead of new PM July 22, 2019 Sterling has fallen today as ministers announced their resignations from government rather than serve under Boris Johnson, who could force a no-deal Brexit on 31 October. Traders see a no-deal outcome as increasingly likely, leading them to raise their bets against the pound, which had fallen by 0.2 per cent against the dollar to $1.248 [...]
Microsoft invests $1bn in OpenAI to create artificial intelligence that can solve humanity’s worst problems July 22, 2019 Microsoft is set to pour $1bn (£800m) into OpenAI to develop general artificial intelligence, effectively by turning its Azure cloud into a supercomputer. The pair have agreed a multi-year exclusive partnership to develop a supercomputer of “unprecedented scale” to train and run ever-more advanced AI software. Read more: Microsoft opens flagship London store just minutes [...]
Department for International Trade to be given part of £14bn aid budget July 22, 2019 The UK’s £14bn aid budget is to be partially allocated to the Department for International Trade (DIT). The DIT, led by international trade secretary Liam Fox, will spend the funds on helping developing countries with issues such as securing trade and foreign investment. Read more: Liam Fox says UK needs a trade deal with Turkey [...]
Extra carbon emissions charge could be slapped on airline tickets under Whitehall plans July 22, 2019 People buying airline tickets could face an extra charge for carbon emissions being added automatically in the coming years. Government ministers are considering forcing airlines to add so-called carbon offsetting payments to tickets. Read more: Vueling Airlines named as the most delayed airline in the UK The extra charge would be voluntary, but passengers would [...]
UK retail industry battles ‘toughest ever’ trading conditions July 22, 2019 The health of the UK retail industry is on the brink of falling to record lows as shops battle some of the “toughest trading conditions they’ve ever experienced”. The Retail Health Index, which takes into account consumer demand, gross margins and costs, fell from 77 to 76 in the second quarter, financial services firm KPMG [...]
Homebase buys Bathstore out of administration July 22, 2019 Homebase has bought Bathstore out of administration, however, hundreds of jobs remain at risk as 124 stores are facing closure. The company will take over 44 branches and the Bathstore website, and plans to open a “significant” number of concessions within its own stores over the next 18 months. Read more: Homebase closes in on [...]
Equifax fined up to $700m for massive data breach July 22, 2019 Equifax has agreed to pay as much as $700m (£562m) as part of a settlement with the US regulator following a 2017 data breach that exposed the personal data of almost 150m people. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) accused the credit rating agency of failing to secure personal information stored on its system. Read more: [...]
Mobile operator Three defies Ofcom’s call for ‘fairer’ phone bills July 22, 2019 Mobile operator Three has clashed with regulator Ofcom over proposals to create fairer bills for customers after their initial contract period has ended. Ofcom today unveiled a string of new rules and said five major providers have pledged to cut bills for millions of customers. Read more: New rules could give fraudsters a back door [...]