Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin says government ‘unfriendly to entrepreneurs’ amid wealth exodus concerns
Warning of ‘marked slowdown’ in mortgage lending from Santander UK chief as bank’s profit creeps up two per cent February 2, 2023 Santander UK’s net mortgage lending climbed higher in 2022, helping to boost profits, but its CEO warned that the bank would have to navigate “a marked slowdown” in mortgage lending in 2023. The Spanish bank’s net mortgage lending increased to £9.8bn from £7.5bn last year helping pretax profit creep up two per cent. CEO Mark [...]
Strikes: Continued disruption warning today with trains starting late and finishing early before Friday’s walk-outs February 2, 2023 Rail passengers have been warned to expect continued disruption to their journeys in the aftermath of Wednesday’s strike action and ahead of Friday’s walkouts. Commuters have been warned by operators to expect “significantly reduced train services” across all three days and advised to check ahead of taking a journey. Train driver members of Aslef and [...]
Shell caps off bumper trading year with record £32.2bn profits February 2, 2023 Shell capped off a highly lucrative year of trading with bumper fourth quarter earnings of £7.9bn - with full year profits of £32.2bn.
‘No plans to do this at the moment’: Superdry boss plays down bid to go private February 2, 2023 Superdry’s chief executive Julian Dunkerton has reassured investors he has “no plans to do this at the moment”. The CEO said he was reserving the right to participate in an offer, were it to materialise within the next six months. The comments come after reports emerged in early December that Dunkerton was mulling a potential buyout, [...]
Sony bumps up veteran CFO to president before elected decline in earnings February 2, 2023 Sony has appointed a veteran executive as its president to lead the Japanese electronics and entertainment conglomerate through times of change. Hiroki Totoki, Sony’s chief financial officer, will become president and chief operating officer, Sony said in a statement. Kenichiro Yoshida remains chairman and chief executive, signalling continuity at the Tokyo-based maker of PlayStation consoles, [...]
Fibre advancing ‘like fury’ but will £5bn infrastructure spend turn round BT’s share price woes? February 2, 2023 BT reported a solid third quarter of the year in a statement to markets this morning, with boss Philip Jansen hailing a “transforming” firm. Revenue in the three quarters to the end of December crept up to £15.6bn, a small fall on last year which the firm put down to inflationary headwinds and legacy product [...]
Canary Wharf buzz almost back as Elizabeth line sees passenger demand near pre-pandemic levels February 2, 2023 Passenger demand at Canary Wharf is now at 90 per cent of pre-pandemic levels on weekdays, according to new data. Transport for London (TfL) figures shared exclusively today with City A.M. show that travel demand on Thursdays has returned to 90 per cent of 2019 levels, while passenger numbers are exceeding pre-pandemic levels on most [...]
The Bank of England appears to have learnt from earlier mistakes February 2, 2023 The Bank of England made a host of missteps in the early parts of the inflation spike. It has become more boring - and more effective - since.
Sunak needs to stop fighting over tax and spend and overhaul the system February 2, 2023 The calls for tax cuts are ceaseless, even in the face of evidence they won’t help us to growth, Rishi Sunak needs to stop arguing over whether or not we can afford them, and start stripping back taxation as a whole, writes Will Cooling
Christmas sales were a moment of reprieve as high streets play whac-a-mole February 2, 2023 Even the biggest retailers were severely dented by the pandemic, strikes, inflation and rising energy costs. It might be a game of whac-a-mole, but the high street is ready for another year, writes Richard Curry.