Oil prices surge after US kill Iran general Qassem Soleimani but Wall Street stocks stutter January 4, 2020 Oil prices surged as much as $3 per barrel on Friday as it and other safe havens such as gold all rallied following the US airstrike which killed Iran’s top military commander, General Qassem Soleimani. While the attack on the head of the elite Quds Force and promise of revenge from Iran left traders concerned, [...]
UK nationals warned against travelling to Iraq and Iran January 4, 2020 The UK has warned its nationals to avoid travelling to Iraq or Iran in the wake of the US airstrike which killed Iranian general Qassem Soleimani on Friday. Soleimani, widely considered the second in command to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei and the architect of the Islamic Republic’s regional policy, was assassinated at Baghdad airport in [...]
Interest rates unlikely to rise in 2020, says ECB policymaker Robert Holzmann December 28, 2019 A European Central Bank policymaker has said it is unlikely interest rates will be lifted back into positive territory next year. Robert Holzmann cited Brexit as being likely to cause renewed concern toward the end of 2020. Read more: New ECB president Legarde tells governments to hite spending to tackle downturn The governing council voted [...]
Spotify to suspend political ads in 2020 December 28, 2019 Music streaming service Spotify has said it will pause selling political advertising in early 2020. The world’s most popular music subscription service, which according to latest figures has 141m users listen to its ad-supported platform, said the pause would include its original and exclusive podcasts. It comes as campaigns for the presidential election set for [...]
UK cyber security chief to step down next year December 28, 2019 The head of the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has announced he will stand down next summer. The government said that Ciaran Martin would leave his post in 2020 on Friday evening, almost four years after founding the organisation. The 45-year-old said it had “been the privilege of a lifetime” and warned the challenge [...]
Tom Watson: Labour brutality and hostility pushed me to step down December 28, 2019 Former Labour deputy leader Tom Watson has said he stood down as an MP last month due to the “brutality and hostility” within his own party. Speaking to the Guardian, he said criticism from factions and on social media had become a “heavy load”. The former West Bromwich East MP revealed that Labour Party officials [...]
Boxing Day shopping slump as retailers suffer sharp decline in footfall December 28, 2019 Boxing Day shopping footfall fell at its steepest rate in nine years due to rain and Black Friday deals. In the period up until noon on 26 December, footfall was down by 10.6 per cent on the same period as a year ago, according to data company Springboard. It was the biggest decline since 2010, [...]
Global shares on the rise in end of year rally December 28, 2019 Global markets scaled records on Friday as the prospect of growth was raised by optimism surrounding a US-China trade deal and strong Chinese economic data. Wall Street saw all-time highs early on Friday before losing steam at the session’s close, with the Nasdaq losing some ground. The Dow Jones rose 23.87 points in total, or [...]
New Year Honours 2020: England’s cricketers, Olivia Newton-John and Iain Duncan Smith make list December 28, 2019 Singer Olivia Newton-John and four of England’s Cricket World Cup winners are among those to have made the 2020 New New Year Honours’ list. Newton-John, who stared in the 1978 film Grease, has been made a dame for services to music, cancer research and charity. She set up a cancer centre near Melbourne in 2012 [...]
New Year’s Eve in London 2019: Where to watch the fireworks December 28, 2019 While the official tickets to watch London’s firework display from the banks of the River Thames have long sold out, there are plenty of spots around the city to watch the action for free. This year’s event opposite the London Eye is the fifth in succession that has been all-ticketed, but travel disruption and overcrowding [...]
