UK manufacturing PMI falls to 53.4 but shows relatively confident sector ahead of leaving EU December 1, 2016 Confidence in the UK’s manufacturing sector posted a surprise fall in November, as the weak pound exerted pressure on manufacturers buying materials from abroad. The manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) fell to 53.4, down 0.8 points since last month, although rates of expansion are still "solid", according to survey compiler IHS Markit. This was the second [...]
The company that started the smartwatch craze is in talks over a $40m acquisition by Fitbit December 1, 2016 A strange – and rapidly deleted – tweet by smartwatch maker Pebble has appeared to confirm (or failed to deny, anyway) rumours it is being bought by one of its biggest rivals. Reports by The Information suggested Pebble, the Kickstarter-funded wearables maker which kicked off the smartwatch craze back in 2012 when it raised over $10m (£8m), was [...]
Reduce motorway speed limit and ditch speed bumps to tackle air pollution, says UK health body December 1, 2016 Why would a UK health body want the government to ditch speed bumps? According to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice), it's a great way to cut air pollution. That's not all: a new report from Nice points to evidence from the Netherlands that slashing the speed limit to 50mph on motorways in [...]
Eurozone manufacturing PMI rises slightly to 53.7 but Germany posts worrying decline December 1, 2016 A closely-watched indicator of Eurozone manufacturing activity rose slightly in November, as the bloc’s industry recovered confidence following the UK’s June vote to leave the European Union. The manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI), which is closely watched by policymakers, increased 0.2 points to 53.7, to reach its highest point since the start of 2014. Any figure [...]
Britain’s telecoms giants to be probed by Ofcom over landline pricing December 1, 2016 The UK's phone companies are exploiting vulnerable people by hiking landline prices even though their costs are falling. Regulator Ofcom delivered a damning verdict on the likes of BT and Virgin Media and announced plans of a detailed review of pricing to ensure customers get value for money. Read more: Ofcom will go to European Commission [...]
British Gas freezes standard energy tariff this winter as it puts pressure on rivals December 1, 2016 The nation's largest energy supplier is freezing its standard tariffs for the winter. It follows action by SSE, which became the first major supplier to promise a price freeze, saying it was capping standard household energy tariffs until April 2017. Renewable power firm Good Energy became the first supplier to guarantee it will not raise gas and electricity [...]
Donald Trump hands top job at commerce department to Bank of Cyprus vice-chairman December 1, 2016 President-elect Donald Trump has appointed the vice-chairman of soon-to-be London-listed Bank of Cyprus as his secretary of commerce. Billionaire investor Wilbur Ross was a key Trump ally during his bid for the White House. Similar to the President-elect, he has criticised the North American Free Trade Agreement and blamed China's entry into the World Trade Organisation in 2001 [...]
China has hit supercar owners with a 10 per cent tax as it cracks down on luxury December 1, 2016 China's crackdown on luxury just went up a gear. It's imposed an additional 10 per cent tax on super cars, so the likes of Bentley, Rolls-Royce, Aston Martin and Ferrari are all affected. The tax will be applied to cars costing more than 1.3m yuan (£151,024) and is part of an effort to clamp down [...]
There are delays on both the Central and Piccadilly Lines this morning due to a shortage of trains – and on the Northern Line because of a fire alert December 1, 2016 Commuters are contending with delays on the Central Line this morning, due to a shortage of trains. https://twitter.com/centralline/status/804231243219038208 Passengers tweeted their displeasure at the news: https://twitter.com/bilzyb/status/804236814517202944 https://twitter.com/lousical/status/804236584933584896 The Northern Line has been thrown into chaos due to a fire alert at Archway station in north London. There are severe delays on the entire line. https://twitter.com/northernline/status/804228255561764864 [...]
Enclothed online stylist review: get someone with better taste than you to post new clothes to your house December 1, 2016 I’m the kind of shopper who ensures menswear will always remain relatively more expensive than womenswear. I don’t enjoy the experience, and therefore do it as little as possible. Once or twice a year, I realise I have nothing seasonally appropriate that wouldn’t cause embarrassment in our office full of hip young gunslingers, and force [...]