FTSE falters as miners and oil stocks crumple – London Report August 19, 2015 THE FTSE 100 ended lower for a sixth consecutive session yesterday, dragged down by mining stocks as copper prices continue to trade near six-year lows. The blue chip index ended down 0.38 per cent, or 24.01 points, at 6,526.29, more than eight per cent below its record high of 7,122.74, reached in April. However, the [...]
Royal London warns chancellor over pension tax system plans August 19, 2015 SAVINGS group Royal London yesterday warned that proposals to tax pension contributions risked putting people off saving while also driving up costs for the industry. The Treasury launched a consultation on pensions tax relief last month to see whether it should install an ISA-style system and tax money paid into pension pots upfront. Pension payments [...]
UK train leasing owner changes track for £3.5bn August 19, 2015 ONE of Britain’s big three train leasing companies has been sold to an Aussie-led consortium in a complicated £3.5bn takeover deal. Angel Trains, which owns 4,600 trains, has effectively been sold to a group led by Sydney-based firm AMP Capital, after leading investor Arcus Infrastructure Partners offloaded its stake in the group. AMP Capital is [...]
Ladbrokes and Coral bet online to halt bookies’ decline – Brand Index August 19, 2015 IT SEEMS the days of high street bookies are numbered, with a growing number of younger gamblers betting online. Ladbrokes has been affected badly by this trend, announcing a first-half loss of £54.1m and the closure of dozens of shops in the UK and Ireland. It has also announced a merger with rival Coral as [...]
Fighter planes soar over England to remember Britain’s Hardest Day August 19, 2015 Yesterday marked the 75th anniversary of the Battle for Britain’s “Hardest Day”, when south east military bases came under attack from the German Luftwaffe, with both sides recording their greatest loss of aircrafts in battle. The impressive commemorations involved 18 Spitfires and six Hurricanes flying over south east England. Staged from Biggin Hill yesterday afternoon, [...]
Corbyn’s face on bankers’ golf ball gift August 19, 2015 USUALLY if you don’t like someone, the cliched approach is to stick their photo on a dartboard and aim for the face. Not content with such a working-class show of vehemence, golfing experts Your Golf Travel made some gifts for their 20 biggest clients. Execs from Coutts, Lloyds and M&S all received golf balls with [...]
Chime believes there’s a sporting chance of a good second half August 19, 2015 COMMUNICATIONS and sports marketing company Chime yesterday reported a fall in first-half pre-tax profit, as major sporting events that boosted its performance in 2014 were not repeated. However, Chime said its performance so far this year has been good and it expects this to continue into the second half. Chime – founded by Lord Bell [...]
Cost of renting a room in London rises to an all-time high August 19, 2015 Renting a room in the capital costs more than ever before, according to a new report out today. SpareRoom, the flat and house share website, said that the average monthly rent for a lodger in London in the first six months of this year was £694, a 5.3 per cent increase over last [...]
Persimmon bucks summer slowdown with profit jump August 19, 2015 PERSIMMON yesterday became the latest housebuilder to boast an impressive jump in first-half profits as would-be homeowners regained confidence following the outcome of the General Election. The York-based housebuilder said profit before tax rose 31 per cent to £272.8m in the six months to 30 June, compared with £208.9m last year on revenues up 11 [...]
Jeremy Corbyn slams rail fare rise as “rip off” August 19, 2015 Regulated rail fares may be set to rise by just one per cent next year, but Labour leadership front-runner Jeremy Corbyn has called them a “rip off”, insisting only his plan to renationalise the railways will deliver savings for consumers. Speaking at a rally at Kings Cross Station yesterday, Corbyn said that “extricating the [...]
