UK house prices: Housing market ‘on its knees’ amid Brexit uncertainty February 28, 2019 UK house price growth remained sluggish in February, as property experts warned the housing market is “on its knees”. Prices rose just 0.4 per cent year on year compared to January’s 0.1 per cent rate of growth, new data published today reveals. Read more: January transactions flat as uncertainty weighs on housing market But prices [...]
Sterling climbs as markets welcome parliament’s vote on possible Brexit delay February 27, 2019 Sterling soared against the euro and dollar today as markets welcomed the possibility that Brexit could be delayed. The pound rose 0.5 per cent to an eight-month high against the dollar of $1.331. Read more: Tory MP leaves government after Brexit amendment to protect EU citizens It did even better against the euro, bubbling up [...]
Poundland launches red and blue passport covers before Brexit February 27, 2019 There is no love lost between Leavers and Remainers over Brexit, but the two sides could come to blows in the aisles of Poundland as the retailer releases red and blue passport covers. The Brexit-inspired passport covers mean fierce Brexiters or lamenting Remainers can cling to the preferred colour of their choice even after blue [...]
Marks & Spencer investors suffer dividend blow as retailer nets food delivery service in £750m Ocado venture February 27, 2019 Shareholders hammered Marks & Spencer’s shares this morning as it became clear the retailer plans to hit up investors to fund a £750m food delivery venture with Ocado. M&S’s stock dropped 9.2 per cent to 303p as it confirmed plans to raise £600m through a rights issue as well as knocking down shareholders’ dividend. The [...]
Under-fire Ted Baker issues profit warning as shares plunge February 27, 2019 Ted Baker warned investors of a £10m hit to profits for its full year this morning, blaming a series of unexpected blows to its bottom line. Profit before tax for the year to the end of January is now expected to fall in the region of £63m, sending shares crashing 13 per cent to 1,734p. [...]
Theresa May to give parliament a vote on no-deal Brexit as delay to Article 50 appears on horizon February 26, 2019 Prime Minister Theresa May today conceded the possibility of delaying Brexit if parliament rejects her deal for a second time. Addressing the Commons, May said that if MPs reject her withdrawal agreement on 12 March, a vote will take place the following day on whether the UK leaves the EU with or without a deal. [...]
Marks & Spencer and Ocado confirm talks over joint retail venture February 26, 2019 Marks & Spencer and Ocado have confirmed they are “in discussions” around a £1.8bn joint venture. Read more: Ocado to develop 20 new warehouses in first stage of US deal with Kroger The tie-up would see M&S pay Ocado between £800m and £900m for a 50 per cent stake in the food delivery service, according [...]
Amazon pledges to create 1,000 UK apprenticeships by 2021 February 26, 2019 Amazon today pledged to create more than 1,000 full-time apprenticeships in the UK over the next two years. Read more: Amazon's UK boss made a trustee of the National Gallery The apprenticeship programme will fill positions across Amazon’s UK operations – from software developers for Prime Video and Alexa's machine learning technology to warehouse workers [...]
Regulator asks court to hold Elon Musk in contempt as another Tesla tweet lands him in hot water February 26, 2019 The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has asked a judge to hold Tesla billionaire Elon Musk in contempt over a fresh tweet the regulator believes could have misled investors. Musk told his followers on 19 February that “Tesla made 0 cars in 2011, but will make around 500k in 2019”. Read more: Elon Musk denies [...]
Housebuilder Persimmon profits top £1bn as it names new CEO February 26, 2019 Persimmon made £1.1bn in profits in 2018, the housebuilder confirmed today, as it named a new chief executive. Dave Jenkinson, the finance officer who has been acting chief executive since its former boss left under a cloud over his bonus last year, will take on the role permanently, Persimmon confirmed. Read more: Is Persimmon’s success [...]
