London’s economic growth in 2015 far outstrips the rest of the country, RBS figures show October 7, 2015 London's economy is outstripping the rest of the country, growing 3.3 per cent year on year, compared with a national average of 2.5 per cent, according to RBS’ regional growth figures out today. London’s economic growth was boosted by its burgeoning professional, scientific and technical services industries. The City and the West End, unsurprisingly, were [...]
Food prices drop ahead of supermarkets’ pre-Christmas battle – Nielsen and BRC October 7, 2015 Food prices fell back into deflation in September, industry figures released today show, as the supermarkets prepare to battle it out for customer’s wallets in the run-up to Christmas. Nielsen and the British Retail Consortium (BRC)’s latest monthly index said food saw annual deflation for the first time in three months, falling sharply to [...]
Local authorities in UK hail chancellor George Osborne’s devolution proposals October 7, 2015 Local authority leaders are overwhelmingly optimistic about the government’s devolution proposals, according to a new report out today. The report, called Making Devolution Work, by tax and advisory firm Grant Thornton UK and the think tank Localis, found that nearly three out of four local authorities say talks with Whitehall about devolution have been [...]
Conservative party conference 2015: David Cameron to unveil affordable housing plan October 7, 2015 Prime Minister David Cameron will today claim the Conservatives are “the party of homeownership” as he unveils plans to accelerate the building of discounted properties for first-time home buyers. In his speech at the Conservative party conference in Manchester, Cameron will announce that the government’s proposed “starter homes” will be part of the wider [...]
Libor rate scandal: Trial of six brokers charged with rigging rates could go on for 14 weeks October 6, 2015 Brokers with nicknames like “Lord Libor” were “willing” and “enthusiastic” participants in the Libor manipulation scheme, prosecutors told the jury in the first day of a trial focusing on the brokers’ alleged role in the rate-rigging scandal. Former ICAP employees Darrell Read and Colin Goodman are among the brokers that stand accused of helping jailed [...]
Millennials are raking it in from their grandparents’ cashed-in pensions October 6, 2015 The Taxpayers’ Alliance may be pushing for an end to winter fuel subsidies and senior bus passes, but researchers at Investec have hit back with a study claiming that pensioners are already hard done by because they have to spend so much on their damn grandkids. The study couldn’t have been better timed, it [...]
Round 2: Trial of six brokers accused of Libor rate-rigging begins in London today October 6, 2015 Six brokers accused of Libor rigging will see their trial begin in London today and could face decades in jail as the second instalment of the Serious Fraud Office’s (SFO) war on financial misconduct gets underway. The six brokers – who have worked at ICAP, RP Martin and Tullett Prebon – are charged with [...]
Quorn Foods sold by Exponent Private Equity to Monde Nissin in £550m deal October 6, 2015 Exponent Private Equity has agreed to sell Quorn Foods to Philippines group Monde Nissin in a deal worth £550m. Monde Nissin is a leading branded consumer goods company in the Philippines. They are building a global branded food business focused on health and sustainability. Simon Davidson, partner at Exponent, said: “Under Exponent’s ownership [...]
HSBC boss Stuart Gulliver wants bank to play major role in AB InBev’s planned takeover of SABMiller October 6, 2015 HSBC boss Stuart Gulliver is trying to persuade the lender to play a major role in financing a possible takeover of SABMiller by rival US-based brewing giant Anheuser-Busch InBev. Gulliver met executives from Budweiser maker AB InBev late last week to discuss a potential involvement for HSBC, according to a report on Sky News. [...]
BP ordered to pay more than $20bn to settle claims from Gulf of Mexico oil spill October 6, 2015 Oil giant BP has been ordered to shell out more than $20bn (£13.2bn) in fines to resolve nearly all claims from its deadly Gulf of Mexico oil spill five years ago, US attorney general Loretta Lynch said yesterday. It is the largest corporate settlement of its kind in US history. The agreement, first [...]
