Late payments: Firms wait twice as long for cash in 2019 December 9, 2019 The UK’s small and medium-sized businesses are being stretched by customers failing to pay them on time, according to a survey from business body Market Finance. Firms had to wait an average of 23 days to receive their money in 2019, the survey found, up from 12 days in 2018. Read more: Government proposes measures [...]
London economy outperforms rest of UK ahead of General Election December 9, 2019 London’s economy continued to outperform the rest of the UK in November, survey data has revealed, with the capital’s businesses enjoying a recovery in new orders as the rest of the country struggled. New product releases, increased investment in marketing, and higher demand from US clients were some of the factors behind higher sales, according [...]
Softbank’s second Vision Fund set to come in underweight December 8, 2019 The giant Japanese investment fund Softbank is dialing down its ambitions for the second of its Vision Funds after failed bets on firms such as Wework and Uber dragged the company to its first quarterly loss in 14 years. Softbank’s first Vision Fund two years ago raised around $100bn (£76bn) from backers including the Saudi [...]
John McDonnell outlines plans to borrow extra £58bn for Waspi women pledge December 8, 2019 Shadow chancellor John McDonnell has defended the Labour party’s plans to borrow the vast majority of the £58bn of pension compensation it has promised 1950s-born women. Challenged over how Labour would pay for the expensive election pledge on BBC’s Andrew Marr show, McDonnell said: “We will borrow, and I don’t shy away from that, because [...]
Chinese exports unexpectedly drop as trade war takes a toll December 8, 2019 China’s exports suffered a shock fall in November and contracted for the fourth month in a row, official data showed today, as the world’s second-largest economy struggled to cope with the US trade war. Yet imports fared better than expected, suggesting Beijing’s programme of domestic stimulus could yet boost the slowing economy. Read more: US [...]
John McDonnell concedes antisemitism has hurt Labour’s campaign December 8, 2019 Shadow chancellor John McDonnell has admitted that the accusations of antisemitism engulfing the Labour party have hurt its General Election campaign. “I worry that this has had its effect,” McDonnell told the BBC’s Marr show on the final Sunday before the 12 December polling day. Read more: Boris Johnson says leaked document ‘wrong’ about Irish [...]
Boris Johnson says leaked document ‘wrong’ about Irish Sea customs checks December 8, 2019 Boris Johnson has rejected claims that his Brexit deal would cause new customs checks on goods travelling between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, but conceded they would apply to products bound for the Republic of Ireland. The PM’s Brexit deal would see Northern Ireland remain in the UK’s customs territory but abide by EU rules [...]
Tax cut promises ‘at odds’ with Tory manifesto, think tank says December 5, 2019 Boris Johnson’s claims that he would deliver a tax-cutting Budget in the first 100 days of a new government “are at odds with his party’s manifesto”, a think tank has said. The Prime Minister last night laid out his priorities for government, saying chancellor Sajid Javid would hold a Budget that cut taxes for families [...]
Watchdogs propose tougher rules to limit banking services glitches December 5, 2019 UK regulators have proposed new rules to make banks and payment firms more resilient to major problems in the wake of TSB’s IT meltdown. MPs called for regulatory changes in October after repeated technological failures by lenders such as TSB, Visa, Barclays and RBS. Read more: TSB IT meltdown blamed on data centre test failure [...]
Japan approves $122bn stimulus package as governments start spending December 5, 2019 Japan’s cabinet has approved a huge $122bn (£92bn) stimulus package to combat stalling growth and insure against global trade tensions. The government expects the 13.2 trillion yen package to push up growth by 1.4 per cent by the end of the 2021 fiscal year. Economists have cautioned the effects could be lower, however. Read more: [...]
