Tube and bus passenger numbers plunge as lockdown begins January 5, 2021 There were 200,000 journeys made on the London Underground on the first morning of the latest national lockdown, figures from Transport for London (TfL) showed today. As of 10am this morning, passengers made a total of 400,000 entrances and exits to the Tube network, which is the equivalent to 18 per cent of pre-pandemic demand [...]
Airline passenger numbers plummet over Christmas period January 5, 2021 The number of passengers flown by Ryanair and Wizz Air fell over 80 per cent for the second consecutive month in December as a dire year for the industry came to and end. The Irish flier carried just 1.9m people last month, down 83 per cent from 11.2m the year before. For the year as [...]
Copper prices on brink of $8,000 on back of weaker dollar January 5, 2021 Copper prices neared the $8,000 mark this morning as the weak dollar made the red metal the pick of the commodities market for traders. As of 6am, three-month copper was trading up 0.9 per cent at $7,933.50 a tonne on the London Metal Exchange (LME). The commodity, a useful barometer for economic health, briefly touched [...]
FTSE 100 off to strong start to 2021 but Wall Street slips from record highs January 4, 2021 The FTSE 100 got the year off to a strong start today, bursting through the 6,600 point mark this morning, before closing the day up 1.8 per cent. However, Wall Street slipped back from record highs as the world’s markets got 2021 off to a fast start. In the first session of the new year [...]
Tested by Covid and Brexit, how have the UK’s borders coped over the New Year? January 4, 2021 After a final frantic negotiating push, the UK and EU agreed a free trade deal in the run-up to Christmas, much to the relief of all concerned. However, despite the deal being done, many were convinced that the New Year would see chaos across the UK’s ports and airports as travellers, businessmen and hauliers all [...]
Stars in their eyes: PSA and Fiat shareholders approve mega-merger January 4, 2021 Shareholders in Peugeot-owner PSA and Fiat Chrysler (FCA) have today approved the mega-merger of the two firms, a deal which will create the world’s fourth-largest auto firm. The new entity, called Stellantis, will comprise 14 different brands, including FCA’s Fiat, Maserati and US-focused Jeep, Dodge and Ram to PSA’s Peugeot, Citroen, Opel and DS. Stellantis [...]
Oil prices hover at 10 month highs as Opec mulls production curbs January 4, 2021 Oil prices are hovering around 10 month highs this morning as producer cartel Opec and other oil rich nations meet to discuss output curbs. Worldwide standard Brent crude was up 1.4 per cent this morning at $52.50, while West Texas Intermediate rose 0.8 per cent to stand at $48.90. Today’s meeting is the first of [...]
UK PMIs: Manufacturing beats forecasts again on Brexit stockpiling boom January 4, 2021 UK manufacturing activity increased for the seventh straight month in December as factories brushed off the impact of the second national lockdown. The IHS Markit/Cips manufacturing purchasing managers (PMI) index stood at 57.5 in December, with any score above the 50 mark indicating growth. The figure, a 37-month high, beat economists’ forecasts of a reading of 57.3 [...]
Campaign groups hit out at ‘callous’ Gatwick second runway plan January 4, 2021 Local campaign groups have hit out at Gatwick Airport’s decision to turn its emergency runway into a routinely operating second runway, calling the move “callous”. Yesterday it emerged that the Sussex airport’s investors – French giant Vinci and infrastructure fund GIP – had committed to funding the expansion, which would add 90 flights a day. [...]
Break: Government freezes quarantine list for Christmas period but US Virgin Islands fall foul December 17, 2020 The Government has added Uruguay, Namibia and the US Virgin Islands to the list of countries returning passengers must quarantine after visiting. But Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has said there will be more changes to the quarantine list until January 7th, mitigating the chance of travel chaos over Christmas, unless it is an “emergency.” No [...]
