FTSE 100 inches up as EU begins €750bn fund discussion July 17, 2020 The FTSE 100 eked out a minor rise today, staying just about in the green to post a 0.11 per cent gain by 10.45am. European stocks were mixed as traders witnessed a nervy start to a crucial meeting of the EU to agree on a €750bn package, and whether it should be mainly given out [...]
Angela Merkel lowers hopes as talks start over €750bn EU Covid fund July 17, 2020 European Union leaders face “very, very difficult” negotiations over a €750bn coronavirus bailout fund, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has warned ahead of the start of talks today. EU heads of state today go into the first in-person leaders’ meeting for five-months to try to thrash out a deal over a huge fund that could kickstart [...]
PM set to unveil ‘lightning lockdowns’ and £3bn Covid cash for NHS July 17, 2020 Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to give local councils the capacity to implement “lightning lockdowns” without first notifying the government when he gives a major speech today. The PM is also set to announce more than £3bn extra funding for the NHS to ensure it can cope with a second peal of coronavirus cases [...]
Twitter says around 130 people targeted in bitcoin scam hack July 17, 2020 Twitter has said around 130 accounts were targeted by hackers in an incident that led to the accounts of high profile figures such as US presidential candidate Joe Biden posting messages asking for bitcoin. The hack has caused embarrassment for Twitter and raised questions about its safety ahead of the 2020 presidential election. Tesla owner [...]
European Central Bank holds interest rates as it eyes recovery July 16, 2020 The European Central Bank (ECB) has left interest rates on hold at record lows and kept its huge bond-buying programme at its current size as it waits to see whether a Eurozone economic recovery takes hold. The ECB left its key deposit rate at minus 0.5 per cent. It will continue its purchases under the [...]
FTSE 100 slips as US-China tensions continue July 16, 2020 The FTSE 100 continued to fall today as US-China tensions and mixed Chinese economic data outweigh optimism over a coronavirus vaccine. Britain’s main stock index stood 0.4 per cent down at 6,267 points just after midday. The FTSE 250 index of smaller companies slipped further, falling 0.6 per cent. Germany’s Dax fell 0.6 per cent, [...]
UK to borrow record £385bn in bond markets to fund Covid support July 16, 2020 UK government fundraising in the bond markets will hit a record £385bn between April and November after it announced plans to raise £110bn more from September. The unprecedented bond sales come as the government racks up the biggest peacetime budget deficit in hundreds of years. It has spent big to keep the economy on its [...]
UK unemployment: 650,000 Brits lose jobs in lockdown July 16, 2020 Around 650,000 people lost their jobs between March and June, official figures showed today, as the UK labour market “weakened markedly” during lockdown. Job losses led to a 0.3 per cent drop in total pay in May compared to a year earlier, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. That is a 1.3 per cent [...]
London faces ‘historic rise in unemployment,’ warns Sadiq Khan July 16, 2020 There could be an “historic rise in unemployment” in London if the government does not do more to protect jobs amid the continuing coronavirus pandemic, mayor of London Sadiq Khan will warn today. The number of Londoners claiming unemployment benefits has already shot up around 185 per cent since the start of the pandemic, today’s [...]
Government must tackle £35bn corporate debt crisis, warn City bosses July 16, 2020 The government must take urgent action to prevent a wave of defaults on £35bn of corporate debt taken on during coronavirus wreaking havoc in the economy, a new report backed by some of the City’s biggest names has said. Policymakers should create a “UK Recovery Corporation” to turn risky debts into more manageable forms like [...]
