Coronavirus: US stocks shake off dire unemployment data March 26, 2020 US stocks shook off awful unemployment data this afternoon to climb higher as traders pinned their hopes on a $2 trillion economic stimulus package. The Nasdaq rose 3.5 per cent by 4.30pm, while the Dow Jones climbed a whopping 4.9 per cent. The S&P 500 posted a large rise of 4.3 per cent. Yesterday the [...]
Coronavirus: New York and London slip up in financial centres ranking March 26, 2020 The world’s leading financial centres saw their ratings tumble in an annual survey today as the global coronavirus pandemic saw investors flee for the relative stability of western Europe. New York and London kept their top two positions in the Global Financial Centres Index list, which measures the competitiveness of the world’s financial centres. But [...]
Intu sees rent payments dive amid UK coronavirus crisis March 26, 2020 Struggling retail landlord Intu has received less than a third of rent due for its second quarter as retailers struggle to pay the bills amid the UK coronavirus crisis. That forced it to abandon 2020 guidance as its incredibly low shares dropped three per cent to under 4p. The government has ordered almost all shops [...]
Lloyd’s swings back to profit, but says coronavirus impact ‘uncertain’ March 26, 2020 Lloyd’s of London said today it is in a “strong” position to support people amid the coronavirus outbreak, as it swung back into profit for 2019. Lloyd’s swung from a £1bn loss in 2018 to a pre-tax profit of £2.5bn last year, it revealed today. But chief executive John Neal said the insurer’s “primary focus” [...]
UK retail sales miss expectations before March’s coronavirus hit March 26, 2020 UK retail sales slumped 0.3 per cent in February to miss expectations of a small rise of 0.2 per cent. And core UK retail sales dropped 0.5 per cent on a monthly basis, deeper than expected in February, despite few businesses seeing the coronavirus-led slowdown that has wrought havoc in March. Excluding fuel, UK retail [...]
One-third of Tube staff off sick as Underground trains still packed March 25, 2020 Mayor Sadiq Khan has urged more Londoners to stay at home today amid the coronavirus lockdown as he repeated his call for the government to ban construction work in the capital. Khan warned London’s Tube and bus transport network is approaching breaking point, with almost a third of Transport for London (TfL) workers off sick [...]
Oil prices knock UK inflation rate down to 1.7 per cent in February March 25, 2020 UK inflation slipped 0.1 per cent in February to 1.7 per cent, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed today, as oil prices sank. Falling oil prices helped push the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) UK inflation rate down from 1.8 per cent in January, amid the ongoing coronavirus travel restrictions. Read more: Oil prices stage [...]
UK coronavirus lockdown: Michael Gove warns of tougher punishments March 24, 2020 Michael Gove has criticised Mike Ashley for failing to close Sports Direct stores on the first day of the UK coronavirus lockdown, and warned of tougher punishments for flouting the public order to stay at home. The minister blasted Ashley’s argument that keeping Sports Direct stores open was crucial to help UK households “maintain a [...]
Global stocks set to rise sharply on Fed’s bond-buying pledge March 24, 2020 Global stocks rose overnight despite fears US President Donald Trump’s administration’s economic stimulus package faces further delays. Asian stocks surged in Tuesday trading that saw Japan’s Nikkei leap seven per cent higher and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index jump 4.6 per cent. That came despite the Senate again blocking Trump’s near $2 trillion (£1.7 trillion) [...]
Stagecoach and Go-Ahead scrap dividends over coronavirus March 23, 2020 Stagecoach has issued a coronavirus profit warning today as both it and Go-Ahead scrapped their dividends as travel restrictions bite. The operator warned it will now miss its target for adjusted earnings per share for the 12 months to the start of May. “The quickly developing Covid-19 situation means we no longer expect to achieve [...]
