British American Tobacco shareholders see light at the end of the tunnel as demand picks up February 11, 2022 British American Tobacco (BAT) has started to reap the rewards of its transition into new products such as vaping, as the global tobacco industry looks to shrink 2.5 per cent this year. While total revenue slipped 0.4 per cent to £25.6bn in comparison with 2020, the tobacco giant’s revenue from new categories swelled more than [...]
Explainer-in-brief: China stokes the flames over Taiwan February 11, 2022 This week, China has suspended imports of beef from Lithuania. While Beijing hasn’t justified its decision, it is crystal clear that the move comes after tensions over Taiwan. Lithuania diplomatically recognizes Taiwan, while China claims the island is part of its territory. Taiwan’s foreign minister called China’s actions “bullying”. Trade is a tried-and-tested weapon for [...]
Can Volkswagen catch Tesla in the electric vehicle race? February 11, 2022 Tesla raised some eyebrows last month as it unveiled an 87% year-on-year rise in vehicle deliveries to over 936,000. In terms of battery electric vehicles (BEVs), this puts it some distance ahead of its European rivals, including Volkswagen AG with less than a half of Tesla’s deliveries (452,900). There are three main reasons for Tesla’s [...]
Gatwick reopens South Terminal as travel restrictions end February 11, 2022 Gatwick airport has announced it will reopen the South Terminal, following today’s end of all UK travel restrictions. Closed in June 2020 to save costs during the pandemic, the South Terminal will reopen on 27 March to help the airport meet post-Covid Easter and summer travel demand. “Following some major announcements from our airlines about significantly [...]
Gold prices remain resilient amid rising inflation and spiking yields February 11, 2022 Gold prices have stabilised above $1,800 per ounce amid rising inflation and 10-year US treasury yields spiking above two per cent.
Smiths takes £740m buyback up a notch just days after ‘largest portfolio move in over a decade’ February 11, 2022 Engineering group Smiths has taken its £742m share buyback up a notch in snapping up £75m worth of ordinary shares. It forms part of the second tranche of the programme, which Smiths announced in mid-November, that aims to return a wad of cash to shareholders The second phase of the buyback will begin Monday and [...]
UK economy records highest expansion since WW2 February 11, 2022 The UK economy has registered the highest expansion since 1946, growing 7.5 per cent in 2021 despite an Omicron-induced slump registered in December. According to ONS figures, the economy was recovering strongly following a 9.4 per cent collapse in 2020 but was hit with a 0.2 per cent bump in December. Retail and hospitality were [...]
Competition watchdog accepts Google privacy changes February 11, 2022 The UK competition watchdog has accepted Google’s changes to its privacy sandbox, following a year-long investigation into the tech giant. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched the inquiry in January 2021 over concerns that Google’s privacy sandbox – a set of new web standards that aim to protect people’s privacy more – would cause [...]
Letters: not so green with envy February 11, 2022 [Re: Hardly any Brits plan to stick to climate goals, Jan 17] A report conducted this week by NewClimate Institute and Carbon Market Watch revealed that climate pledges made by 25 of the world’s largest companies are, in fact, misleading. Companies analysed in the report include giants like Google, Amazon, IKEA, Apple and Nestle. Only [...]
Biden: US citizens should leave Ukraine February 11, 2022 US President Joe Biden has advised American citizens living in Ukraine to leave the country immediately, amid growing fears of a Russian invasion.
