In pictures: Supermoon rises over London for the last time in 2014 September 9, 2014 Last night was the last time in 2014's we'll see a "supermoon" – the time when the moon is at the closest point in its orbit to the earth. At 1.38am UK time, the moon was 222,698 miles from earth – that's 30,000 miles closer than usual, making it 30 per cent brighter and 14 [...]
Amazon slashes the price of its Fire smartphone to 99 cents – weeks before its UK launch September 9, 2014 Amazon has slashed the price of its less-than-popular smartphone to 99 cents just a month and a bit after it launched in the US, and weeks before its UK launch. Alas, the deal (99 cents with a two-year contract from AT&T) is only available in the US, but still – it suggests quite how disappointing [...]
iPhone 6 launch: Five things you need to know about new Apple designer Marc Newson September 9, 2014 As fanboys and investors alike get the popcorn in for tonight's big Apple launch, the rumour-mill has gone into overdrive about what exactly is going to be announced tonight. We're 99 per cent sure the iPhone 6 is going to be part of it – the phone is expected to come in two sizes (with [...]
Strong pound pushes trade deficit wider as industrial output grows 0.5pc September 9, 2014 The impact of the strong pound continued to be felt in July by businesses with fingers in pies abroad, figures by the Office for National Statistics published this morning showed, with the UK's trade deficit widening to £3.3bn, up from £2.5bn the month before, despite the fact imports to the UK rose. The deficit on [...]
Virgin on ridiculous: Four businesses showing how Richard Branson likes to “fail fast” September 8, 2014 It was only a year ago that Richard Branson was prancing around in a red kilt during the opening of Little Red, his domestic airline for the UK, which was designed to provide competition after British Airways owner International Airline Group acquired BMI. Since its launch, though, Little Red has been dogged by rumours [...]
Battersea retail search: This gorgeous image shows how the South Bank will look in 2023 September 8, 2014 Battersea Power Station began the hunt for businesses to fill the redeveloped version of its 42-acre site last week, launching a global tour taking in Kuala Lumpur, New York, Dubai, Paris, Los Angeles, Milan, Tokyo, Beijing, Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Doha to find the right businesses. The scale of Battersea itself is already massive: [...]
London’s Luton airport evacuated due to a “suspicious package” September 8, 2014 The terminal building at London Luton Airport was evacuated this afternoon and the bomb squad was called in after a suspicious package was discovered. "The decision has been taken with the police to ensure the safety and security of passengers and staff," said Luton Airport on its website, adding that all incoming flights had been [...]
The iPhone 6’s battery life could be twice as long as its predecessor’s September 8, 2014 As the date of the Great Apple Event moves closer, the rumour-mill has gone into overdrive. There's an interesting one on a French gadget site, suggesting the iPhone 6's battery will be almost twice as powerful at the iPhone 5s. Are all our smartphone fantasies about to be fulfilled? According to the video, the 5.5-inch [...]
Brent crude drops below $100 a barrel September 8, 2014 A raft of weak figures from major oil consuming nations pushed the price of North Sea Brent Crude to below $100 a barrel this morning for the first time since June last year. The ICE October Brent, an international benchmark for oil prices, fell 88 cents to $99.94 a barrel. The drop came after data [...]
Is the UK property market finally cooling? House price growth slows to 3pc September 8, 2014 House prices grew just three per cent in the three months to August, down from 3.5 per cent in July, figures published this morning showed – another sign of cooling market conditions. The figures, by Halifax, showed prices rose 9.7 per cent in the year to August, down from July's 10.2 per cent, and just [...]