Wafer-thin and mint February 6, 2014 Piaget earns its place in the record books with the ultra-thin 900P Piaget’s Altiplano 900P slipped into the record books at SIHH this year, becoming the world’s thinnest mechanical watch. At just 3.65mm deep, it’s a whole 0.4mm thinner than the previous record-holder, Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Master Ultra-Thin Jubilée. In the business of skin-tight watches, that’s miles. [...]
How shopping for watches online went mainstream February 6, 2014 DM London chairman David Coleridge tells us how the watch retail industry is changing with the times DAVID Coleridge has always been a man with a vision; one of those people who are ahead of the curve, a leader rather than a follower. It sounds hyperbolic but without him, in his auspices as chairman of [...]
Curtain raisers February 6, 2014 The best of the best from the annual SIHH showcase event Calibre de Cartier Diver £5,700 No one expected Cartier to produce a diving watch, but it did so with all the style you’d expect and more besides. Not only that, but it meets the highest technical specs for diving pieces, and carries an in-house [...]
London Time: Smart watches, we’re afraid to report, are here to stay February 6, 2014 YOU know how rude it seems when someone checks their wristwatch during a conversation? Well, things are about to get a lot ruder, thanks to 2014 being the year of the smartwatch. Just as the pocket watch proved itself useful enough to migrate to our wrists over the course of the 1930s, we are now [...]
An understated Montblanc coup February 6, 2014 The Meisterstück Heritage collection is surprising in all the right ways SIHH is not exactly known for its restraint. It’s the chance for some of the watch world’s most capable brands to show off; consequently one is usually beset on all sides by skeletonised tourbillon watches that can tell the time on Mars. The total [...]
Hands on heart Valentine’s timepieces February 6, 2014 Blancpain Saint Valentin Price on application Each year Blancpain brings out a Valentine’s watch. This one bears a mother-of-pearl dial, plenty o diamonds and a trio of hearts. www.blancpain.com Chopard Happy Sport Medium £5,230 The diamonds in Chopard’s Happy Sport watches sit loose, rolling about above the dial – whimsical and eye-catching at once. www.chopard.com [...]
Forex rate-rigging scandal 2015 probe: Foreign exchange crisis engulfs London February 5, 2014 City foreign exchange desks were thrown into turmoil yesterday as top traders at Goldman Sachs and Citi resigned, while Deutsche Bank fired three New York traders. Banks are being lent on hard by regulators over alleged FX benchmark manipulation, adding to chaos in the sector. The New York Department for Financial Services (DFS) has become [...]
Held to Ransom February 5, 2014 No compromise by transport unions as London’s commuters face second day of Tube strike misery Millions of commuters are braced for a second day of crowded buses and scarce Tubes today as the unions and transport authorities remain at loggerheads over ticket office closures and other reforms. Around a third of the normal London Underground [...]
Twitter revenue doubles but growth stalls February 5, 2014 TWITTER saw its revenues more than double in the fourth quarter trumping analyst expectations, but a slowdown in the growth of new users alarmed investors. In its first results as a public company, the social media firm posted revenue of $243m (£149m) in the three months to the end of December, up 116 per cent [...]
Eurozone on track for 2014 recovery despite retail hit February 5, 2014 THE EUROZONE’S economy has enjoyed a strong start to the year, business surveys revealed yesterday, despite separate figures pointing to a disastrous December period for the currency bloc’s retailers. Output in the euro area economy grew at its fastest rate since June 2011 last month, according to Markit’s widely-regarded purchasing managers’ index (PMI). However, Brussels [...]
