Visa plans to increase online interchange fees for UK customers buying from EU firms March 16, 2021 Visa – the UK’s biggest debit card provider – is reportedly planning to increase fees on purchases made by British customers from most of Europe. The payments giant is preparing to inform its 4,000 clients that the interchange fees will be hiked to 1.5 per cent for online credit card payments, Sky News reported. Meanwhile, [...]
Exclusive: Central London office investment activity jumps on success of UK vaccine rollout March 16, 2021 Investment activity in the Central London office sector jumped last month as the progress of the UK’s Covid vaccination programme bolstered buyer confidence, City A.M. can reveal. In the City of London, £346.55m was transacted across four deals in February, compared to just £30.96m in the previous month. Investment in the Square Mile was down [...]
Portugal removed from UK’s travel ban ‘red list’ in boost for summer holiday hopes March 16, 2021 Portugal will be removed from the UK’s travel ban list this week, in a boost for summer holiday hopes this year. The Department for Transport has updated its “red list” of destinations, which bars travellers from those countries entering the UK. British or Irish nationals are permitted to enter the country, but must quarantine in [...]
Sadiq Khan to unveil £544m plan to fund London’s Covid recovery March 16, 2021 Sadiq Khan will today announce a £544m investment in London’s jobs and high streets to help the capital recover from the coronavirus pandemic. The Mayor of London will also call on the government to match his spending plans for the city as he unveils the proposals at the inaugural London Recovery Summit. Alongside the spending [...]
Londoners protest against police after Sarah Everard vigil disruption in Clapham March 15, 2021 Londoners protest against police after Sarah Everard vigil disruption in Clapham
Iceland to launch new convenience store format Swift this week March 15, 2021 Iceland is preparing to unveil a new convenience store format, with the first branch set to open this week. The frozen food retailer will launch the Swift store concept in Newcastle on Thursday, according to reports. The store will be in a converted Iceland branch and will sell “the full spectrum of grocery” with a [...]
H&M sales pick up in March as some markets allow stores to reopen March 15, 2021 H&M announced that sales began to pick up in the first half of this month as coronavirus pandemic restrictions have lifted in some markets. Sales between 1 and 13 March were up 10 per cent in local currencies as many countries, including single-biggest market Germany, began to lift restrictions, allowing the retailer to open hundreds [...]
Central London retail footfall records double-digit growth weeks before stores reopen March 15, 2021 Central London retail footfall jumped last week as lockdown fatigue grew ahead of the date when restrictions will begin to ease. The number of shoppers visiting central London increased 14.3 per cent, ahead of other UK cities which recorded a more modest uplift of 2.3 per cent on average. Despite the double digit increase in [...]
Screwfix to open 50 new stores and create 600 jobs this year March 15, 2021 Screwfix is planning to open an extra 50 stores this year, creating around 600 new jobs, in response to the boom in demand for home improvements during the pandemic. The retailer, which is owned by B&Q parent company Kingfisher, will open 40 new branches in the UK, creating 500 jobs, and a further 10 in [...]
Canary Wharf: The ‘all work, no play’ banking district tries to reinvent itself as a Millennial neighbourhood March 15, 2021 Canary Wharf: The 'all work, no play' banking district tries to reinvent itself as a Milleninial neighbourhood
