National Grid profit slides as Covid costs increase November 12, 2020 Energy firm National Grid posted a 12 per cent decline in profit for the first half as the coronavirus pandemic increased the network owner’s costs. Underlying profit fell from £1.3bn to £1.15bn in the six month period, which the FTSE 100 company said was down to rising bad debt provisions and a shortfall in revenue. [...]
Google critics call for EU to fast-track competition crackdown November 12, 2020 A group of 165 companies and industry bodies has urged the EU to accelerate its crackdown on Google’s alleged anti-competitive practices, warning planned new laws will take too long to come into force. In a joint letter to EU competition chief Margrethe Vestager, seen by Reuters, the critics accused Google of unfairly favouring its own [...]
National Express recovery speeding up before second lockdown November 12, 2020 Coach operator National Express said that its revenue and earnings had continued to rise in the build up to the second national lockdown. In a trading update, the FTSE 250 business said that it had secured around 70 per cent of last year’s revenue in October, up from 60 per cent in August. It added [...]
What does the US election mean for healthcare investors? November 12, 2020 Voting has already begun in the US presidential election with many polls predicting a win for Democrat candidate Joe Biden. A Biden victory has been perceived in many quarters as likely to be negative for the healthcare sector. However, as with everything to do with US healthcare, the reality is more complicated. The main focus [...]
Brits to get an extra Bank Holiday to celebrate Queen’s Platinum Jubilee November 12, 2020 The Queen’s 70th year on the throne will be marked with a “once in a generation” show in 2022, with an extra Bank Holiday for Brits to join in the celebrations. Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden and Buckingham Palace announced the move this morning. Read more: Takeout pints in, banana bread out as Brits react to [...]
ITV forecasts advertising rebound after Covid-19 slump November 12, 2020 ITV today said it expects advertising revenue to be slightly higher year on year in the fourth quarter as spend begins to recover from its pandemic-induced slump. The broadcaster said total advertising spend was down seven per cent in the third quarter, a sharp improvement on the 43 per cent crash posted in the previous [...]
WH Smith scraps dividend as it crashes to £280m loss November 12, 2020 WH Smith has scrapped its dividend for the full year as the pandemic drove it to a pre-tax loss of £280m. The figures WH Smith posted revenue of £1bn in the year to the end of August, down 33 per cent on last year. The company swung to a pre-tax loss of £280m, compared to [...]
UK must ‘knuckle down’ to get EU trade deal, says Irish PM November 12, 2020 The UK must “knuckle down” to secure a post-Brexit trade deal with the EU, the Irish prime minister has said. Taoiseach Michael Martin said failing to reach an agreement would be “very, very damaging all round”. The UK is running out of time to secure a trade deal with the bloc before the transition period [...]
Some 19,000 jobs for 16-24s created under government Kickstart Scheme November 12, 2020 More than 19,000 placements for unemployed young people have been created under the government’s £2 billion Kickstart Scheme so far. The Kickstart Scheme began last week and, according to HMRC, is expected to produce “tens of thousands” more placements in the coming months. The scheme provides funding to create new job placements for 16 to [...]
London’s housing market activity expected to slow next year, survey finds November 12, 2020 London’s housing market activity is expected to slow down next year as the withdrawal of government support measures and a difficult economic backdrop dampens the post-lockdown surge in demand. The latest research showed that both demand for properties and new homes being listed for sales remained strong last month. However a survey by the Royal [...]
