Europe’s development banks lured into new Canary Wharf HQ May 1, 2019 Canary Wharf landed a major financial tenant today, as Europe’s development bank shifted its new HQ to the business district in a post-Brexit commitment to the capital. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is set to take more than 360,000 square feet (sq ft) at 1-5 Bank Street, moving its headquarters from Exchange [...]
Workspace giant IWG posts double-digit growth as international demand swells May 1, 2019 The world’s largest serviced offices group posted a double-digit rise in revenue this morning amid growing international appetite for its workspace brands. Read more: IWG shares surge after £320m Japanese franchise deal IWG, the firm which owns Regus and Spaces, revealed a 10 per cent rise in its first-quarter revenue today, rising in line with [...]
Shareholders call for Google parent Alphabet to be broken up May 1, 2019 A group of shareholders in Google's parent firm Alphabet has called for the company to be broken up, following a string of complaints against the firm regarding alleged human rights abuses and excessive founder dominance. Read more: Google parent Alphabet misses estimates as EU fine takes its toll The resolution, submitted by four members of [...]
US manufacturing sees moderate growth in April as China trade talks continue May 1, 2019 Growth in the US manufacturing sector picked up slightly in April, with output and new orders bouncing back from the lows seen in March, according to a closely-watched industry gauge. Read more: US stocks rise as 'productive' China trade talk round ends Despite companies’ backlogs growing, the rate of job creation was the slowest since [...]
UK is ‘nesting a dragon’ by allowing Huawei equipment in 5G network May 1, 2019 The UK will be ‘nesting a dragon’ if it allows Chinese tech firm Huawei to participate in its 5G network, a senior Tory MP has warned. Last week it emerged the government will give the green light for Huawei’s equipment to be used in non-core parts of the network, despite warnings from spy bosses over [...]
Marks & Spencer provokes Twitter storm with move to make Percy Pig sweets vegetarian-friendly May 1, 2019 Marks & Spencer customers have reacted with outrage to the British retailer's decision to remove gelatine from the longstanding recipe for its Percy Pig sweets. Although now suitable for vegetarians, the new recipe – introduced this month – has provoked a Twitter storm of anger, with the supermarket being condemned for altering the sweets, which it has sold since [...]
Kier Group to build Northamptonshire prison for Ministry of Justice in £253m deal May 1, 2019 Construction outsourcer Kier Group has been tasked with building a Northamptonshire prison which will house more than 1,500 inmates, in a £253m contract award. Read more: Holloway prison to be turned into 1,000 homes after £81.5m sale The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said the new facility in Wellingborough will be on the same site as [...]
US stocks rise as ‘productive’ China trade talk round ends May 1, 2019 US stocks have climbed higher after markets opened following the end of another round of trade talks between the United States and China that treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin called “productive”. Mnuchin flew to Beijing on Tuesday with US trade representative Robert Lighthizer to hold discussions with their Chinese counterparts. Mnuchin today tweeted: “Ambassador Lighthizer and [...]
London councils give ice cream vans the cold shoulder in pollution crackdown May 1, 2019 Bad news, Londoners – just as the weather warms up it appears ice cream vans could be banned from some of the capital's boroughs this summer over air pollution fears. Camden and Westminster councils are taking a range of measures to restrict the operation of the vans in an effort to reduce pollution levels on [...]
Trivago profits rise amid revamp of advertising spend May 1, 2019 Hotel booking site Trivago has posted a sharp increase in profitability in its first-quarter results amid a revamp of its marketing strategy. Read more: Two-thirds of hotel websites leak guests’ personal data The figures Trivago posted net profit of €7.8m (£6.7m) in the three months to the end of March, compared to a net loss [...]