Downing Street: ‘Significant gaps’ remain in Brexit trade talks November 12, 2020 Downing Street has said “significant gaps remain” between the UK and EU in Brexit negotiations with talks not expected to yield a breakthrough this week. The Prime Minister’s spokesman told journalists today the UK was “working hard to get a deal”, but that little progress had been made. The unofficial deadline for the two sides [...]
Legal & General shares fall after insurer scales back dividend plans due to Covid-19 November 12, 2020 Shares in Legal & General fell today after the insurance giant kept its final dividend payment for 2020 flat due the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and cut its five-year dividend growth target. In an update to the stock exchange this morning, Legal & General said it had delivered a “resilient” performance so far this [...]
Carlyle invests $250m in third-party reseller Pharmapacks November 12, 2020 Private equity giant Carlyle has invested $250m in US e-commerce firm Pharmapacks, one of Amazon’s largest third-party resellers. Launched initially as a pharmacy shop in 2010, Pharmapacks has grown into an online retailer focused on health, personal care and beauty products. The investment, which values Pharmapacks at approximately $1.1bn, came from Carlyle Partners VII, a [...]
Equality watchdog clears BBC of gender pay discrimination November 12, 2020 The BBC has been cleared of unlawful gender pay discrimination but was warned of a breakdown in trust between the broadcaster and its female employees. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) last year launched an investigation into the BBC following a string of pay complaints from high-profile presenters such as Carrie Grace and Samira [...]
Disappointing GDP figures show UK recovery lost momentum ahead of second lockdown November 12, 2020 UK GDP grew by a record quarterly amount in the three months to September, but failed to make up for its historic slump the previous quarter as Covid-19 brought large swathes of the economy to a halt. The UK economy grew by a record 15.5 per cent in the third quarter, the Office for National [...]
Housebuilder Vistry to reinstate dividend due to strong sales November 12, 2020 Vistry Group is planning to resume shareholder payouts next year as the housebuilder said demand for new homes had remained strong despite the second England-wide lockdown. Vistry, which was previously known as Bovis Homes, said it is on track to report full-year profit before tax at the top end of its expected range of £130m [...]
Defence firm Qinetiq lifts guidance as order book grows November 12, 2020 Defence and security firm Qinetiq has raised its guidance for the full year after it reported a strong increase in orders against the backdrop of the Covid-19 crisis. The figures Qinetiq posted revenue of £603.2m in the six months to the end of September, up 24 per cent on last year. Statutory operating profit fell [...]
UK declares China has broken joint treaty over expulsion of Hong Kong MPs November 12, 2020 The UK has declared that China has once again breached the Sino-British treaty over Beijing’s expulsion of pro-democracy Hong Kong MPs. Foreign secretary Dominic Raab said the move was a “clear breach of the legally binding Sino-British declaration” and that Beijing had “undermined Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy”. The Chinese parliament adopted a resolution [...]
Pushing the Heights November 12, 2020 Upward Trajectory The reports that the Ethereum blockchain network suffered issues Wednesday morning, with knock-on effects at related service providers, were timely brushed off by market participants and the bullish camp regained upside momentum yet again. Bitcoin made another push towards the $16000 level as the total aggregate open interest (OI) hit another record high. [...]
Over 90 per cent of summer holidays cancelled despite travel corridors November 12, 2020 Over 90 per cent of holidays in July and August were cancelled this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, despite the opening of travel corridors. New figures from travel industry association ABTA have brought to light the full extent of the damage done to the sector by coroanvirus. As a result of the slew of [...]
