Coronavirus cruise ship counts 40 more cases February 7, 2020 More than 40 more people trapped on board a cruise ship have contracted coronavirus, it has been confirmed. Now 61 passengers on the Diamond Princess have the illness, with 20 having left the ship for further treatment, according to reports. A total of 78 Brits are believed to be on board the luxury cruise liner, [...]
Nokia investors must wait longer for dividend despite profit rise February 6, 2020 Nokia posted a surprise profit rise for the end of 2019 today, as cost-cutting helped it navigate a “challenging” year in which it slashed its outlook and cancelled its dividend. The figures Net sales were flat at €6.9bn in the three months to the end of December. But Nokia managed to eke out a rise [...]
Compass hails revenue rise but warns of currency hit February 6, 2020 Catering company Compass saw organic revenue rise 5.3 per cent for the last three months of 2019 as it landed new US contracts and held onto customers. Organic revenue climbed 7.5 per cent in North America, particularly thanks to appetite among the business, healthcare and education sectors. In Europe organic revenue was flat, however, which [...]
CMA opens probe into Flutter’s £10bn Stars Group betting merger February 5, 2020 The UK’s competition watchdog is set to open an investigation into a planned £10bn gambling merger between Flutter and the Stars Group. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will probe whether the tie-up between Paddy power and Betfair owner Flutter and Toronto-based Stars will hurt competition. The CMA is considering whether it is or may [...]
Vodafone will spend €200m to rip Huawei from core networks February 5, 2020 Vodafone said the government’s decision to leave Huawei out of the core of the UK’s 5G network would cost the operator €200m (£169m) as it revealed third quarter results today. The mobile operator welcomed Boris Johnson’s “facts-based” decision to keep Huawei at arm’s length and vowed to remove it from its own core. Chief executive [...]
Housebuilder Redrow’s profit falls 15 per cent February 5, 2020 Housebuilder Redrow hailed what it called a “robust” performance in the six months to December, despite posting a 15 per cent fall in profit amid “an uncertain political and economic background”. The figures Redrow revealed profit before tax sank 15 per cent year on year to £157m in the first half of its 2020 financial [...]
Micro Focus chairman steps down as profit plummets February 4, 2020 Micro Focus lost its chairman today as it posted a huge drop in profit in a “challenging” latest financial year, triggering traders to offload the struggling firm’s stock. The figures Operating profit sank 41.2 per cent year on year to $221.7m (£170.9m) for the 12 months to the end of October. Revenue also tumbled 29.6 [...]
Burford Capital issues warning on 2019 profit February 3, 2020 Burford Capital, the litigation funder locked in a stand-off with short-seller Muddy Waters, has warned 2019 profit will fall lower partly due to a fall in potential earnings from certain investments. The AIM-listed company said it finished the first half of its financial year with an “unusually high” amount of settlement, $173m, thanks to investment [...]
Pound sinks as Boris Johnson warns of hard Brexit February 3, 2020 The pound has sunk in early trading today ahead of a Boris Johnson speech in which the Prime Minister is expected to demand a looser trade deal with the EU that could spell a hard Brexit. Sterling fell over one per cent against the dollar to $1.3069 ahead of the Prime Minister’s speech. Johnson is [...]
Coronavirus: Hong Kong closes 10 of 13 China borders February 3, 2020 Hong Kong has suspended 10 of its 13 border crossings with mainland China as the coronavirus outbreak spreads. Leader Carrie Lam stopped short of closing the entire border despite calls to do so as the city fights to curb the spread of the coronavirus, which has now claimed 361 lives. Hong Kong has now seen [...]
