Hedgies in High Court bid to force up Inmarsat takeover price December 1, 2019 The buyout group looking to take British satellite company Inmarsat private is facing a legal challenge from hedge funds that could scupper the deal at the 11th hour. At a hearing on Tuesday hedge funds led by Oaktree Capital will press the High Court to block the approval of the so-called scheme of arrangement, one [...]
UK services sector confidence falls further as election looms November 29, 2019 Optimism among businesses in the UK services sector fell again in the three months to November, new survey data has shown, but at a slower pace than in the previous quarter. Business and professional services firms had a worse quarter than those in the consumer realm and intend to cut back staff and reduce investment [...]
UBS wealth arm pessimistic about UK earnings in 2020 November 28, 2019 UBS Global Wealth Management (GWM) has said it expects earnings growth for UK equities to flatline in 2020, regardless of which party wins the upcoming General Election. Analysts at the Swiss banking giant’s wealth arm said that if the Tory party wins and pushes through a Brexit deal, the benefits will be limited by fresh [...]
EU and UK feel the pain as global trade contracts November 28, 2019 The European Union has been hit hard by the slowdown in international trade, data showed today, with the UK suffering more than most. Global trade continued to slide in the third quarter, the OECD said, approaching two-year lows as the US-China trade war and Brexit uncertainty took a heavy toll. Read more: China rages after [...]
TSB branch closures: Where all 82 bank branches will close November 28, 2019 TSB has announced the full list of the 82 branches it is set to close in 2020 as part of a cost-cutting plan that will also slash 370 jobs. The high-street lender is overhauling its business as it licks its wounds from a catastrophic IT meltdown and as banks across the world feel the pressure [...]
General Election 2019: Conservatives and Labour’s spending plans not credible, warns IFS November 28, 2019 Neither the Tories nor Labour have presented voters with credible tax and spending plans in their General Election manifestos, according to damning analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). Labour is unable to raise the money it wants to and the Conservatives cannot meet the pledge to balance the budget with tax freezes and [...]
Labour and Tories already on track to break spending rules, says report November 28, 2019 Both Labour and the Conservatives are already on track to break their spending rules due to uncosted promises made in their manifestos, according to the Resolution Foundation think tank. The two main parties have both changed their so-called fiscal rules to allow more government spending, but say they will balance day-to-day spending with receipts by [...]
Private sector groups rebut attack on UK corporations November 27, 2019 Business groups and a leading think tank have defended UK capitalism and corporations after harsh criticism from a report written by Oxford professor Colin Mayer for the British Academy. Mayer’s report, released today, said the corporation “has failed to deliver benefit beyond shareholders, to its stakeholders and its wider community”. Read more: Top US bosses [...]
Angela Merkel says Europe cannot do without Nato November 27, 2019 German chancellor Angela Merkel appeared to rebuke French President Emmanual Macron today when she said Europe cannot defend itself without the Nato defence alliance. Macron said earlier this month that Nato was suffering “brain death” due to poor coordination and the volatility of US President Donald Trump. Read more: Donald Trump set to return to [...]
Chinese industrial profits fall at fastest in eight months November 27, 2019 Chinese industrial firms suffered their biggest fall in profits in eight months in October in the latest evidence that the world’s second-biggest economy is slowing. Industrial profits tumbled 9.9 per cent in October compared to a year earlier, following a 5.3 per cent fall in September, the country’s National Bureau of Statistics said this morning. [...]
