Samsung to invest $200bn over three years in post-pandemic push August 24, 2021 Samsung is set to invest 240 trillion won ($206bn) by the end of 2023 in an effort to expand its biopharmaceuticals, AI, semiconductors and robotics offerings in the post-pandemic era. The South Korean tech giant said the investment will help strengthen its global standing in key industries such as chipmaking while allowing it to seek [...]
Stabbed by syringes: retail workers call for tougher sentences for assault August 24, 2021 Ministers have been urged to introduce tougher sentences for people who assault supermarket workers in England and Wales. Calls from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) come as new legislation comes into force in Scotland that makes assaulting or abusing retail staff a standalone offence. The BRC has called on peers in the House of Lords [...]
South Korea set to crack down on Apple and Google over app charges August 24, 2021 South Korea is poised to block Apple and Google from charging commission on in-app purchases in what could be the first such move by regulators around the world. The parliament’s legislation and judiciary committee is today expected to approve legal changes that will ban app store operators with dominant market positions from forcing certain payment [...]
Chinese Uber rival Didi suspends UK launch amid data crackdown August 24, 2021 Ride hailing platform Didi has called off plans to launch in continental Europe including in UK cities. The firm is consulting with staff working on its Western Europe roll out on assigning roles and potential redundancies, according to reports from the BBC and The Telegraph. Plans to launch in London, Sheffield and Salford have been [...]
Science Group turns up heat in bid to takeover TP Group – CityAM : CityAM August 24, 2021 Science Group has made a further share purchase in an engineering firm after its attempts to buy the company were repeatedly rebuffed by the board. As of today, Science Group holds 140,528,829 shares in TP Group giving the company 18.03 per cent of voting share capital. Last week Science Group, a services and product development [...]
Nicola Sturgeon is playing the long game for Scottish independence in a toxic deal with the Greens August 24, 2021 Nicola Sturgeon entering her SNP government into a formal cooperation agreement with the Scottish Greens is all about optics and momentum, and not about substance. In the May election, the SNP narrowly failed to win an overall majority of seats at the Holyrood election. This doesn’t mean they needed a co-operation agreement to govern; the [...]
The rock, paper, scissors of ESG: when social missions clash with corporate governance August 24, 2021 In ESG terms, Ben & Jerry’s decision not to renew the contract of its Israeli licensee was described by the company as an “S” decision. The irony is that its “social mission” is likely to prompt a heavy-hitting response by investors in its parent, Unilever, on governance, or “G”, grounds. It has been widely reported that investors subject [...]
Culture club: Ally MacIndoe CA on her role as Finance Director MENA at the British Council and the UK’s continued cultural clout August 24, 2021 This article first appeared in ICAS’ CA magazine. The UK has always had huge cultural clout. By connecting people through innovative education and the soft power of the English language, Ally MacIndoe CA, Finance Director MENA at the British Council, is keeping it that way Many readers, whether in the UK or abroad, will have heard [...]
ESG investing now mainstream, but who’s holding ‘greenwashed’ portfolios to account? August 24, 2021 Environmental, social and governance (ESG) concerns are rising up the agenda of investors, who are increasingly more attentive to the impact of their investments. Beyond financial performance, investors are looking at their portfolios in relation to ESG factors, but how can they assess the ESG credentials of companies and funds when the data is scattered [...]
US stocks open higher to cancel out last week’s rout August 23, 2021 US stocks rose sharply today to help claw back sharp losses registered in last week’s deeply volatile trading environment. The blue-chip S&P 500 jumped 0.95 per cent to 4,483.95 points, while the Dow Jones climbed 0.72 per cent to 35,372.11 points. The tech-heavy Nasdaq was on track for another record high, surging 1.59 per cent [...]
