On one day last month the London Underground carried more passengers than the population of Wales November 13, 2015 Transport for London (TfL) has published passenger statistics for last month showing than on 9 October this year, the Tube carried a record-breaking 4.7 million customers. That's 1.6 times the population of Wales. Thought your commute was getting busier? You're not wrong: according to TfL, the last week of October was the Tube's busiest ever, with [...]
German growth slows as GDP edges up 0.3 per cent in third quarter November 13, 2015 The German economy grew just 0.3 per cent in the third quarter, an estimate published today showed – down from 0.4 per cent in the previous quarter. Although the figure met economists' expectations, it was nonetheless disappointing for those hoping for a stronger performance. Destatis, Germany's official statistics body, said that while final consumption expenditure [...]
The UK and US governments just conducted a huge cyber terrorism drill to test the resilience of the FCA, Bank of England and Treasury November 12, 2015 The UK and US governments have conducted a huge joint exercise, along with global financial firms, to see how well we'd respond to a "cyber incident" in the finance sector. The drill involved participants including the Bank of England, the Treasury, the Cabinet Office and the Financial Conduct Authority, the chancellor said today. The exercise [...]
Why the UK always falls short in global innovation rankings November 12, 2015 Innovation is often cited as the Holy Grail of any politician. Without it, wealth creation becomes harder and economies can stagnate. Yet developing and encouraging this innovation is harder than it looks. That certainly seems to be the case in the UK, which once again is not represented in the latest Thomson Reuters study on [...]
Prudential Regulation Authority to publish long-awaited report into collapse of HBOS next week November 12, 2015 After seven years, the Bank of England will finally publish its long-awaited report into the collapse of HBOS next Friday, it said today. The joint investigation, by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Financial Conduct Authority, will look (FCA) into the failure of the bank, which collapsed in 2008 as the financial crisis set in. [...]
European Banking Authority decrees role-based allowances do count as bonuses – and must be subject to a cap November 12, 2015 Bad news for January's bonus season: the European Banking Authority (EBA) has made the controversial ruling that role-based allowances do count as bonuses – and therefore must be subject to a cap. In a paper published today, the EBA ruled that role-based allowances, which many UK institutions have used to sidestep bonus cap rules set out by Brussels in [...]
Zut alors: Not a single UK company makes the Top 100 Global Innovators list again – but French firms make up 10 per cent of the list November 12, 2015 The UK may be leading the way when it comes to sectors such as fintech – but it turns out the rest of the world beats us when it comes to innovation. For the fourth year in a row, not a single UK company has been included in the Top 100 Global Innovators list. The [...]
Rolls-Royce share price tumbles as it warns profits will be at lower end of expectations after “sharply weaker” demand November 12, 2015 Shares in troubled engineer Rolls-Royce opened more than 20 per cent lower, at 528p, as it warned profits will be at the lower end of expectations in 2015, thanks to "sharply weaker " demand. After a review of operations by chief executive Warren East, the company said this morning that profit headwinds in 2016 are likely to [...]
Rightmove sees off threat from OnTheMarket.com as it increases market share November 11, 2015 More proof Rightmove is rising above estate agent bickering, after research by analysts Liberum found it's grabbed market share from new rival OnTheMarket.com. It was feared the property portal would be hit by the launch of OnTheMarket in January. One of the conditions of listing on the site, an estate agent-owned mutual designed to increase competition among [...]
UK house prices: “Just move out of London” – one mortgage site’s solution to Generation Rent’s affordability crisis November 11, 2015 Nowhere has the UK's housing crisis been more potent than in the capital, where a generation of people – dubbed "Generation Rent" – has been priced out of the property market. Now one mortgage site has a solution: go somewhere else. MyLocalMortgage.co.uk reckons if Generation Rent wants "cheaper housing and higher life satisfaction, it should just move out [...]
