Quiz: Who said it – real Trump or robot Trump? October 18, 2016 Can you tell the difference between Donald Trump and a robot? The Presidential hopeful's Tweets are increasingly erratic as voting day approaches, although, he has always had a peculiar way with 140 characters. Following along with the Presidential election race, there's a Trump Twitter bot that aims to recreate the magic of his tweets using artificial intelligence. Read [...]
Weak pound and oil price surge pushes average price of unleaded petrol above 115p for first time over a year October 18, 2016 The average price of unleaded petrol across the country rose above 115p yesterday, reaching 115.15p, according to data from Experian Catalist. Although many pumps will already have been selling fuel at that level or higher for several days, this is the first time in over a year the overall average has nudged above the threshold. The [...]
Philip Morris chokes as cigarette volumes shrink October 18, 2016 Cigarette firm Philip Morris has beaten bottom line Wall Street expectations in its third quarter, posting a profit of profit of $1.94bn (£1.57bn). However, cigarette volumes choked, dropping by more than five per cent. The numbers The firm reported diluted earnings per share of $1.25 for the third quarter, which were flat versus 2015. Net revenues hit $19.9bn, up by 2.6 [...]
Brexit deal and EU trade policy in the spotlight as EU-Canada deal falters October 18, 2016 The EU’s entire trade policy was brought into question today after political squabbling looked set to cast another delay to the landmark EU-Canada free trade agreement. Following a regional parliament in Belgium voting against the deal last week, trade ministers from the other 27 EU countries were forced to issue an ultimatum to the Belgian [...]
An industry-specific Brexit deal, rather than a holistic one, could cause more harm than good, says shadow City minister October 18, 2016 The City could wind up shooting itself in the foot by pushing for sector-specific Brexit deals, the shadow City minister has told City A.M. Jonathan Reynolds said he "didn't favour sector-by-sector negotiations". He noted that, because other EU capitals were keen to take London's financial services crown, an industry specific deal, rather than a holistic one, [...]
Sterling and FTSE 100 jump as inflation hits two-year high October 18, 2016 Sterling recovered some poise today, soaring higher after inflation jumped to a two-year high. The FTSE 100 also jumped back above 7,000 in early morning trading, fading only slightly to end the day up 0.7 per cent at 6,994 as traders and investors digested the news that prices rose by one per cent in the year to [...]
Asos to move employees onto a higher living wage in the next 18 months October 18, 2016 Hitting back at accusations that it mistreats workers, Asos said today it will be moving employees onto the living wage foundation level of pay over the next year and a half. The Living Wage Foundation sets a separate minimum wage for employers that companies opt-in for. Currently, companies in the scheme pay a minimum of £8.25 [...]
Price of Asian benchmark Australian thermal coal heats up to $100 for first time since 2012 October 18, 2016 The price of Australian thermal coal, which is mostly used in power generation, reached $100 today for the first time in four years. A cargo was ordered on trading platform GlobalCoal for $100 per tonne from Australia's Newcastle port in November. Shares in Glencore, one of Australia's largest coal producers, were up 2.7 per cent in [...]
Vodafone and Inmarsat team up on Internet of Things October 18, 2016 Telecoms firm Vodafone and satellite operator Inmarsat have teamed up to connect things in remote parts of the world to the internet. Vodafone has signed a roaming agreement with Inmarsat that allows it to offer customers access to Inmarsat’s satellite network to transmit data. It's expected to be used for things like monitoring an oil rig at sea or a driverless car [...]
Eurostar services through Channel Tunnel halted due to power outage October 18, 2016 Eurostar services between London and the Continent through the Channel Tunnel have been halted this afternoon, due to a power outage. "Please be aware that we are currently experiencing disruption to Eurostar services, more details will follow shortly once the full impact has been established," the rail operator said in a statement on its website. Eurostar [...]