NatWest notches up £2.5bn in ‘resilient’ first half, as lending rises July 30, 2021 NatWest roped in some 2.5bn in operating profit before tax in the past six months, swinging from a loss of £770m in the first half of 2020. The British bank’s net lending rose by £2.2bn to £362.7bn in the six months to 30 June, while UK and RBSI retail and commercial businesses pushed lending to [...]
Microsoft in talks to back pandemic bruised Indian hotel chain Oyo July 30, 2021 Microsoft is in late-stage talks to invest in Indian budget hotel chain Oyo, according to reports, after a bruising 18 months for the business. The backing would value the startup at around $9bn, sources said, although the investment figure is not yet known. The deal may close as soon as Friday, one source said. The [...]
Hong Kong: First person charged under national security law sentenced to nine years July 30, 2021 The first person to be charged under Hong Kong’s national security law has been sentenced to nine years in prison. Tong Ying-Kit was arrested following a pro-democracy protest in the city last July in which he rode a motorbike into three police officers flying a flag with the phrase “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our [...]
London Shepherd Neame pubs pull 60 per cent of revenue on pre-pandemic levels July 30, 2021 Shepherd Neame pubs in London have pulled 60 per cent of their revenue and total sales from 2019 levels before pandemic restrictions eased fully in July. The British brewery, which operates some 310 pubs across the Southeast, found that pubs outside London fared slightly better – raking in 84 per cent of revenue and total [...]
Dairy giant Arla struggles with trickling supply of lorry drivers July 30, 2021 Dairy giant Arla has been hit by the lorry driver shortage which has forced it to cut back on its deliveries to the shelves of most UK supermarkets. The milk producer typically supplies some 2,400 stores daily but has struggled with a trickling supply of drivers since April, its UK managing director Ash Amirahmadi said. [...]
New frontier: UK renews outdated space policies as giants seek commercial travel July 29, 2021 The UK is set to start regulating commercial space travel from today, as an increasing number of companies look to capitalise on the race to the stars. Before appointing its first-ever space travel regulator, the UK Civil Aviation Authority (UK CAA), the global legal framework surrounding commercial space travel appeared a relic of the Cold [...]
Met Office warns of climate change as UK weather hit record levels last year July 29, 2021 The Met Office has warned that last year was the first in history to have temperatures, rains and sunshine hit record levels. The effects of climate change continue to be felt across the UK, the Met Office said in a report today, during a July which brought both heat-health warnings and flooding to London. “This [...]
Chinese billionaire sentenced to 18 years in prison for ‘picking quarrels’ July 29, 2021 A Chinese billionaire has been sentenced to 18 years in prison after being charged with “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” in China, according to reports. Pig farming mogul Sun Dawu, a prominent figure in China, was also fined nearly $500,000 under the charge that has previously been used against activists and dissidents. Around 20 family [...]
Pets at Home keeps lockdown puppy boom momentum and hoists revenue July 29, 2021 Pets at Home has kept up its pandemic sales momentum in its first-quarter following last year’s lockdown puppy boom, with revenue up 25.7 per cent. The pet retailer group’s total revenue lifted to £377m in the weeks to 15 July, with 29.4 per cent growth on the same period the year before Covid-19. The group [...]
Marlboro maker takeover of Vectura raises public interest eyebrows in government July 29, 2021 The takeover of respiratory drug firm Vectura by tobacco company Philip Morris International has raised government eyebrows over public interest concerns, according to the business secretary. The deal, worth more than £1bn, will be ‘closely monitored’ by the government after a letter from Labour shadow ministers urged the government to consider blocking it. Under the [...]
