Unhappy Meal: McDonald’s sales fried across the globe by coronavirus lockdowns June 16, 2020 McDonald’s sales fell by about one-third across the globe over the first two months of the current quarter, as the coronavirus pandemic forced it to close stores across Europe. The fast food giant said that demand had improved significantly from April to May, as many of its restaurants reopened to diners, especially in the US. [...]
Selfridges, Kurt Geiger, Intu hail shopper appetite as stores reopen June 16, 2020 High-end retailers have struck a positive note after the first day of their stores being reopen since the coronavirus lockdown started in March. Selfridges, the London department store, said that footfall had been greater than expected, while other retailers and venues gave similar indications. Selfridges said: “We have been pleasantly surprised by the response as [...]
New Zealand reports two new coronavirus cases who flew in from London June 16, 2020 New Zealand is no longer coronavirus-free, after two women who arrived in the country from Britain tested positive. The cases are New Zealand’s first for 24 days, after Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern declared the country virus-free last week. The women were released early from government quarantine and allowed to drive nearly 650km from Auckland to [...]
Coronavirus loans: UK companies borrow £38.4bn to survive lockdown June 16, 2020 British companies have borrowed £38.4bn under the government’s three emergency credit programmes since the coronavirus pandemic struck. However, the approval rate for coronavirus business interruption loans (CBILS) remains just over half, with 51 per cent of the loans being allowed. Meanwhile, the bounce back loan scheme, which supports small businesses with 100 per cent state-backed [...]
Ride hailing app Grab cuts 300 jobs amid coronavirus hit June 16, 2020 Ride hailing company Grab has announced it will lay off more than 300 employees due to the effects of the coronavirus. The company, backed by Softbank, said it would cut about five per cent of its workforce after the ride hailing industry has taken a significant hit from the pandemic. Grab is Southeast Asia’s most [...]
Ashtead Group shares leap after ‘resilient’ lockdown performance June 16, 2020 Ashtead Group shares shot up this morning, as it announced it has has maintained its dividend to shareholders, despite profit having halved in the most recent quarter as the company battled the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Shares in the construction equipment rental group rose 12 per cent this morning as it hailed a “resilient” [...]
Greggs to reopen 800 shops this week as baker rolls out lockdown exit plan June 16, 2020 It has been a long time since you could get your hands on Greggs’ famous vegan sausage rolls – but the wait will finally come to an end this week. Greggs is to reopen 800 shops on Thursday, having successfully trialled social distancing measures in a small number of stores, with the remaining 1,250 shops early [...]
Restaurant bosses call for VAT cut as dining out sector braces for difficult return to business June 16, 2020 Restaurant industry bosses have today urged Boris Johnson to take drastic action, including slashing VAT on the food they serve, to help the struggling sector survive the effects of coronavirus. In a letter signed by the bosses of 90 major chains, Deliveroo founder Will Shu said that the government should also extend its job retention [...]
High street footfall jumps 50 per cent as shops reopen for business June 15, 2020 Britain’s high streets have enjoyed a 52 per cent jump in footfall this morning, after shops opened their doors for the first time since the coronavirus lockdown was imposed in March. So-called non-essential retailers reopened this morning after the much-anticipated easing of lockdown measures by the government. According to Springboard data, footfall across all retail destinations [...]
Shops reopen to long queues as social distancing measures come into force June 15, 2020 Retailers this morning flung open their doors to the public for the first time since the coronavirus lockdown was imposed in March. People formed long queues outside Primark outlets in London and Birmingham this morning before the shops reopened at 8am, in a signal that despite fears that footfall would be low initially, there was [...]
