Oil prices fall again as coronavirus continues to weigh on demand January 30, 2020 Oil prices fell again today after a brief respite on Wednesday as the worsening coronavirus outbreak continued to take its toll on economies. Brent crude fell two per cent to $57.68, whilst West Texas Intermediate showed a similar decline to $52.32. The renewed fall came after a Brent crude rallied by 0.5 per cent yesterday, [...]
Shell’s final quarter profit halves amid oil price slump January 30, 2020 Shell saw its final quarter income halve as the continued slump in global oil prices knocked the company’s full year profits. The figures Shell’s full year income attributable to shareholders for 2019 was $16.5bn (£12.7bn), a 23 per cent fall from last years $21.4bn. In the final quarter, shareholder income fell 48 per cent from [...]
Households paying too much to support UK electricity networks January 30, 2020 Consumers have paid more than they should have to support the UK’s electricity networks, according to a new paper from the National Audit Office (NAO). Each year around one fifth of a typical household’s annual electricity bill – £130 – goes towards the running and maintenance of the UK’s power networks, which transports electricity to [...]
Lawyers challenge Andrea Leadsom’s decision to approve power plant January 30, 2020 An environmental law charity has launched a High Court challenge against business secretary Andrea Leadsom’s decision to approve a new gas power plant in North Yorkshire. Clientearth is challenging Leadsom’s decision on the grounds that construction of the plant, which would be the largest in Europe, goes against the Planning Inspectorate’s (PI) recommendation that it [...]
Novartis predicts 2020 growth as coronavirus fails to disrupt drugmaker January 29, 2020 Novartis’ chief executive said that the firm’s supply chain was not being disrupted by the coronavirus as the Swiss drugmaker predicted rising profit in 2020. Next year the firm has predicted net sales growth of a mid-to-high single digit percentage, as well as a high-single to low-double-digit increase in operating income. Novartis’ fourth-quarter results saw [...]
Fresnillo production falls as firm prepares for mine closure January 29, 2020 Full year gold and silver production at FTSE 250 miner Fresnillo fell in 2019 as the firm prepared for the closure of its Noche Buena mine in Mexico. Total silver production fell 11 per cent, from 61.8 million ounces in 2018 to 54.6 million ounces last year. However, the final quarter showed a 3.7 per [...]
Ovo Energy slapped with £8.9m fine for inaccurate billing January 29, 2020 Ovo Energy has been charged £8.9m by industry regulator Ofgem after inaccurate information on bills led to some customers being charged too much. The challenger firm, which recently became one of the UK’s largest energy suppliers, fell foul of the watchdog after incorrect annual statements were sent to more than 500,000 customers between July 2015 [...]
De Beers records highest diamond sales since April as 2020 looks brighter January 29, 2020 De Beers, the diamond mining arm of Anglo American, recorded its highest sales of the gems since April last year in signs that the global market is beginning to recover from a nightmare 2019. The firm, which was taken over by Anglo in 2011, sold $545m (£418.7m) in rough diamonds in its first cycle of [...]
Oil majors investing only three per cent of capital into renewables January 29, 2020 Oil majors responsible for half of global output are investing a mere three per cent of their combined capital expenditure on renewable energy sources. According to a new report by law firm CMS, fifteen of the world’s largest oil companies, including Shell, BP, Exxon Mobil, and Saudi Aramco spent approximately $6.6bn of a combined $228bn [...]
Citymapper appoints advisers amid takeover interest January 28, 2020 Public transport app Citymapper has tapped advisers from US bank Raine after receiving overtures from several global tech firms. Sources told Sky News that the platform, which is available in 41 cities, brought Raine on board last week to guide it through discussions with several suitors. The expressions of interest, which were unsolicited, relate to [...]
