Cigarette giant British American Tobacco lures more new vaping customers so far this year than all of 2020 December 7, 2021 Cigarette giant British American Tobacco (BAT) said this morning it has seen around 3.6m new customers start using its vaping, heated tobacco and oral products in the first nine months of this year, more than in all of 2020. The business said that its non-combustible products, which include those three types, had 17.1m customers at [...]
CMA warns taxpayers and councils face higher bills after £11bn Veolia-Suez waste management merger December 7, 2021 The £11.1bn merger between French waste and water management giants Veolia and Suez could lead to higher prices for UK councils and taxpayers, according to Britain’s competition watchdog. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the tie-up, which was announced earlier this year, could lead to a loss of competition in the supply of key [...]
Growth of property values hits 15-year high: House prices rise for fifth straight month amid 8.2 per cent annual jump December 7, 2021 Average UK property price hits a new record high of £272,992 last month, rising in November by 8.2 per cent compared to the same month a year earlier, according to Halifx, publishing its monthly index this morning. Prices increased by 1 per cent month-on-month in November while quarterly house price inflation is now at its [...]
Storm Barra has reached UK: More chaos expected for thousands of English households still without power December 7, 2021 Most oft he UK and Ireland will be hit by Storm Barra today, bringing disruptive winds, heavy rain and snow, according to the Met Office this morning, threatening more chaos as some households continue to struggle without power in the wake of Storm Arwen. Weather warnings for snow, ice, rain and wind have been issued [...]
Early orders and Singles Day boost: Both Chinese exports and imports pick up steam December 7, 2021 European equity markets got off to a solid start to the new week yesterday as investors looked past the negativity of last week and chose to focus on the expectation that the Omicron variant, while more transmissible, may well not be as virulent as the Delta variant that is wreaking havoc across Europe. “Indications so [...]
Breakthrough: Scientists able to measure how well each Coronavirus vaccine binds to any Covid variant, including Omicron December 6, 2021 UK scientists have developed a new test will be able to demonstrate how well different Coronavirus vaccines “bind” to spike proteins in different Covid mutations, including the new Omicron variant. The main aim is to determine how each individual responds to Covid-19 and to different vaccines, and to establish whether someone needs a booster. In [...]
HMRC: We are ‘actively challenging’ multinationals on tax with additional £94bn raked in during last decade December 6, 2021 HMRC told City A.M. this afternoon that it is “very actively challenging” multinationals when it comes to tax as the taxman secured £94bn in additional revenue from large businesses in the last decade. HMRC was responding to claims that big businesses’ underpaid tax has risen by another £1bn in a year to £35.8bn, up from £34.8bn [...]
UK tax revenues nosedive by £33bn but pandemic impact less pronounced than previous crises December 6, 2021 Total tax revenues across the UK dropped by £33.4bn last year, according to the annual revenue statistical release from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The OECD say that the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on tax revenues was less pronounced than during previous crises, in part, due to government support measures introduced to [...]
$61bn push for supply chain control: Amazon builds 10,000 containers as it charters long-haul planes and private cargo ships December 6, 2021 E-commerce Amazon remains largely unaffected by the global supply chain crisis as it is increasingly taking control of the entire supply chain. The company is building its own containers, and has “quietly” been hiring long-haul planes as well as private cargo ships, according to a CNBC report this weekend. Its 53-foot containers are manufactured in [...]
Experian exclusive: Businesses’ credit scores stabilise as recovery is in full swing December 6, 2021 Businesses’ credit scores are recovering well from the impact of Covid-19, according to industry giant Experian, sharing some of its findings exclusively with City A.M. this afternoon. Business credit score levels were back up to the pre-pandemic average of 44 by September 2021, compared to a score of 40 throughout most of lockdown. Looking at [...]