Consumer group Which? attacks Transport for London’s proposals to clamp down on Uber December 9, 2015 Consumer group Which? has criticised Transport for London’s (TfL) plans for Uber as “stifling” and “dangerous.” TfL has proposed new regulations for Uber, including introducing a minimum wait time of five minutes, even if a car is immediately available. Sharing a ride with other people would be banned, as would displaying nearby drivers’ availability on the [...]
Lots of cash, cheap debt and board confidence meant 2015 was a record-smashing year for M&A with $3.9 trillion of deals, including AB InBev’s takeover of SABMiller and the Pfizer Allergan merger December 9, 2015 It has been a record smashing year for mergers and acquisitions: 2015 has seen the highest ever deal values in the US and in Asia, the first time there has been more than $1 trillion of deals in three consecutive quarters, and broken the global M&A record. So far this year, $3.9 trillion (£2.57 trillion) [...]
UK business is booming overseas but two thirds of companies are “sitting ducks” to exchange rate volatility December 9, 2015 A third of British businesses are “dangerously exposed” to foreign exchange volatility as more companies turn to overseas trade. Two thirds of medium and large firms are doing more international trade than in 2014, yet 32 per cent don’t take measures to protect themselves from swings in exchange rates and hedge risks, according to research from Fexco Commercial [...]
The year in Facebook: The UK general election, Labour leadership elections, and the Paris attacks December 9, 2015 There's been plenty to discuss on Facebook this year, from the Greek debt crisis to elections galore, and political debates and humanitarian disasters have dominated talk on the social networking site. The most talked about topic in the UK was the General Election in May this year, closely followed by the Labour leadership elections. The terrorist attacks [...]
The year in Facebook: The UK general election, Labour leadership elections, and the Paris attacks December 9, 2015 NULL
Tottenham Hotspur vice-president David Pearl is thinking about opening the Hatton Garden heist museum December 9, 2015 Property mogul, and the vice-president of Tottenham Hotspur football club, David Pearl has said he is considering opening a museum on the site of the Hatton Garden jewellery heist. Pearl's property company Structadene bought the leasehold to the 1,300 sq ft offices at 88-90 Hatton Garden in October, when it was put up for sale by Hoffman Partners, on behalf the liquidators Streets SPW. [...]
Virgin Atlantic raises £220m from mortgaging its Heathrow landing slots December 9, 2015 Virgin has raised £220m in debt in an innovative deal that will see the airline use its Heathrow landing slots to secure the senior notes. For the deal Virgin has created a new subsidiary, Virgin Atlantic International Ltd, which will hold the majority of its landing slots at Heathrow, effectively mortgaging them by paying a dividend to outside investors. Virgin is the third [...]
Sainsbury’s, Asda, Tesco and Morrisons will all cut petrol prices as oil falls below $40 a barrel December 9, 2015 Oil prices plunging below $40 a barrel for the first time since February 2009 may have thrown the markets, but it’s good news for consumers, as the price of petrol may fall to £1 a litre for Christmas. The RAC estimates that the average price of unleaded petrol will fall by 3p in the next [...]
Low inflations means UK workers are set to see real wages increase 2.3 per cent in 2016 December 9, 2015 UK workers will have something to celebrate this Christmas: real wages are set to increase by 2.3 per cent next year, the biggest rise since 2008. While salary growth forecasts for 2016 remain the same as this year, at 2.5 per cent, lower inflation levels, predicted to be 0.2 per cent will boost the spending [...]
M&A activity in the UK increased 90 per cent in 2015, to highest levels since 2007 thanks to Shell’s BG deal and AB InBev’s takeover of SABMiller December 9, 2015 UK M&A activity is at its highest level since 2007, up 90 per cent from last year to $516.5bn (£344.4bn), according to EY. The number of deals increased more modestly, from 2,822 to 2,932, showing that 2015 has indeed been the year of the megadeal. UK companies are seen as a particularly attractive acquisition opportunity [...]
