West watches on as Bank of Korea raises interest rates August 26, 2021 The Bank of Korea is raising interest rates in a shift away from pandemic era monetary policy as the country faces spiralling public debt. The interest rate climbed 25 basis points from a rate of 0.5 per cent to 0.75 per cent following a 10 per cent increase in household debt and a 14.3 per [...]
Car production tumbles afresh amid supply and labour shortages August 26, 2021 Car production tumbled in the UK for the first time since February as the combination of global chip shortages, workers being forced to isolate, and summer shutdowns jammed up factory lines. According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), just 53,438 cars were made in July, down 37.6 per cent on the year [...]
Uber UK boss to meet GMB leader after driver representation deal August 26, 2021 Uber’s UK boss is due to meet with the new leader of the GMB union in a bid to settle their differences about the ride-hailing app’s working practices. Jamie Heywood, Uber’s UK regional manager, will meet with Gary Smith, months after the firm took the decision to recognise the union, the BBC said. Under that [...]
Big Tech vows to ramp up cybersecurity after White House summit August 26, 2021 Major US tech firms have pledged to ramp up their cybersecurity defences following a White House summit yesterday. Google, Microsoft, Amazon and IBM were among the companies to make multi-billion-dollar commitments as President Joe Biden called on top chief executives to “raise the bar on cybersecurity”. During a meeting alongside his members of his Cabinet, [...]
Staff shortages leave consumer facing businesses pessimistic about recovery August 26, 2021 Consumer facing businesses, such as bars and restaurants, have a pessimistic outlook about their economic recovery, according to a CBI survey. In the three months to August, optimism about the general business situation fell from +47 per cent in the previous quarter to -17 per cent despite an uptick in sales volume. The biggest concerns [...]
PureGym plots more UK expansion as pent-up demand pays off August 26, 2021 PureGym begins to reap the rewards of pent-up demand as all of its 506 gyms have once again opened their doors, pushing the group to expand. The gym operator recorded a revenue for June at 99 per cent of the levels seen in the June before the pandemic, in the quarter ending 30 June 2021, [...]
Mike Ashley’s successor offered £100m potential pay package August 26, 2021 Michael Murray, who will succeed Mike Ashley as the chief executive of Frasers Group, could receive shares worth £100m under a proposed pay package. The pay package would be linked to the retailer’s stock price performance, Sky News has reported. The company’s share price would have to top £15 for 30 consecutive days before October [...]
Afghanistan: ‘Not everyone is going to get out’, says Wallace August 26, 2021 Defence secretary Ben Wallace has warned that thousands of Afghans who have helped the UK risk being left behind. Officials are increasingly concerned about the risk of the airport being attacked by ISKP, a branch of the Islamic State terror group. The Foreign Office has advised against travelling to Kabul airport. The new travel advice [...]
UK to scrap web cookie requests in post-Brexit data revamp August 26, 2021 The UK will scrap “pointless” web cookie requests as part of a major package of reforms that will replace the EU’s data laws with a new post-Brexit regime. Culture secretary Oliver Dowden today unveiled a string of new measures designed to harness the power of data to drive growth and create jobs. The move will [...]
Barclays invests £294m to expand India operations August 26, 2021 Barclays has announced plans to invest more than 30bn rupees (£293.9m) in its India unit to expand operations. The infusion of capital will enable Barclays, which has operated in the Asia Pacific region for 50 years, to grow its Corporate and Investment Banking and Private Clients businesses. Barclays offers financing, advisory and risk management services [...]
