Statistics can be used in many ways: The Office for National Statistics’ retail sales index is designed for everyone to understand July 24, 2015 What is important for one person isn't always the most important thing for someone else. This is why it's vital to offer different ways of looking at how things are changing in order to get the full picture. The ONS' retail sales index is one of the best indicators of the performance of the [...]
The Financial Times’ Britishness has made it global, and despite being bought by Japan’s Nikkei that’s not going anywhere July 24, 2015 Some will share the unease voiced by Will Hutton on BBC Newsnight that the Financial Times has passed into overseas ownership, especially in the scenario he painted where other media assets such as ITV and Channel 4 are targets for global players such as Comcast of the US. Having worked at the FT for [...]
Obama’s Brexit intervention is not in Britain’s interests: It benefits an America suffering from an increasingly hostile Europe July 24, 2015 Voters! Hold-up! Stop worrying about that pesky decision about what our future relationship with the EU should look like. You don’t need to worry about exercising your democratic right in the UK, the President of the United States wants the UK to stay in the EU come what may. Phew, glad that’s settled. Ok. [...]
London weather: Met Office issues amber and yellow alert for heavy rain and gale force winds, warning weather could cause travel chaos July 24, 2015 Don't forget your brollies today: the Met Office has just updated its weather warning, taking its alert from yellow to amber in parts of south east England and East Anglia. It has also increased its forecast for rain to 30mm, up from 20mm, which is expected "quite widely". Heavy rain and gale force [...]
Wealthy, healthy and successful The middle-class drinkers with the hidden health problem July 24, 2015 Wealthy, healthy, clever and sociable: sounds like the dream combination. But scientists have warned that people this group is at serious risk of harmful drinking when they reach their 50s in what has been dubbed a “middle class phenomenon”. A study, published in the British Medical Journal today, suggests that “succesful agers” – those [...]
Brexit: UK would lose influence and damage prosperity if it leaves European Union, warns Barack Obama July 24, 2015 Barack Obama has urged Britain to stay in the European Union, saying the country would lose global influence and damage prosperity in the event of a Brexit. Speaking in an interview with the BBC last night, the US President suggested the UK's role in the EU was essential for both business and international security. [...]
Vodafone leads the FTSE as share price soars after improved sales July 24, 2015 Vodafone is leading the FTSE 100 this morning, with its share price up four per cent in mid-morning trading as it begins to show signs of recovery in Europe. The figures: The phone giant had an improved, but still not stellar, three months to 30 June. Reported group revenues fell 0.9 per cent to £10.1m, [...]
The Co-operative Group gets upgrade from S&P: The Co-op is moving up in the (credit ratings) world July 23, 2015 Good news (at last) for the troubled Co-op Group. Ratings agency Standard & Poor's has upgraded its credit one notch to BB, saying the outlook for the business “is stable”. This pat on the back comes after the business returned to profit in April, turning around the situation a year earlier when it made [...]
Tony Blair’s obsession with “going to uni” is to blame for the UK’s apprentice problem – but we can’t afford to be sniffy July 23, 2015 Let’s face it, the UK has an apprentice problem. Whether we’re dissecting Lord Sugar’s latest line-up of hopefuls or wringing hands at the thought of our kids becoming one, as a nation we look down on apprentices. How far the government’s commitment to creating three million new apprenticeships by 2020 will change things, is [...]
Aberdeen Asset Management share price plunges on quarterly results as investors cut down Asian, emerging markets exposure July 23, 2015 Aberdeen Asset Management's share price plunged this morning, making it the biggest faller on the FTSE 100 this morning, after revealing a gloomy set of results. The figures: The fund manager has had a tough quarter. Assets under management have dropped considerably, down to £307.3bn at 30 June from £330.6bn at the end of March [...]
