Netflix abandons work on Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle’s animated series ‘Pearl’ May 2, 2022 Netflix has stopped work on Meghan Markle’s animated family series. The streaming giant announced it would drop the Duchess of Sussex’s ‘Pearl’ series, as it faced plummeting stock prices and falling subscriber numbers. This comes after Netflix announced its first quarter results at the end of last month, with its stock down 26 per cent, [...]
Kremlin to net $180bn tax windfall from energy price surge May 2, 2022 The Kremlin is set to receive a tax windfall from its brutal invasion of Ukraine sending energy prices soaring, reveals analysis released today. Revenue from oil and gas sales “will increase significantly to more than $180bn (£143bn)” this year, energy consultancy Rystad Energy estimates, a 45 per cent and 181 per cent surcharge compared to [...]
‘Hitler also had Jewish blood’: Russian foreign minister causes fury with remarks about Zelensky and ‘de-Nazifying’ Ukraine May 2, 2022 Russia’s foreign minister has caused fury after claiming Hitler “had Jewish blood”, in a bid to justify the Kremlin’s so-called ‘de-Nazification’ of Ukraine. Moscow’s top diplomat Sergei Lavrov was condemned by Israel’s foreign minister Yair Lapid, after making his comments to Italian media this week, while referring to Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky. The Ukrainian [...]
Pfizer shareholders in for larger dividends this year, as Covid-19 cliff edge fails to materialise May 2, 2022 Pfizer shareholders are pegged to receive an even bigger dividend payout this year, according to analysts, with the feared Covid-19 cliff edge yet to materialise for the firm. The US pharmaceutical giant on Thursday declared a $0.40 (31p) dividend for the second quarter of this year, ahead of its first-quarter results published tomorrow. With shareholders [...]
BP and Shell set to unveil massive profits and payouts amid growing calls for windfall tax May 2, 2022 Shareholders in BP and Shell are anticipating bumper payouts this week, amid mounting calls for a windfall tax.
Slack’s technology chief says staff are returning to the office, with flexibility key to hybrid working May 2, 2022 The head of technology at Slack, a messaging platform widely used during the pandemic, has confirmed some of the company’s employees are heading back to the office on a hybrid basis. Cal Henderson made his comments after the firm added almost 60,000 corporate customers during coronavirus, amid a boom of home working, and then hybrid working. On getting [...]
UK audit chief in the running for HS2 top job May 2, 2022 The head of the UK’s accounting watchdog is reportedly in the running to lead the High Speed 2 rail construction project, raising further questions about the future of the country’s audit regime. Sir John Thompson, chief executive of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC), is in the frame for becoming the new chair of the project, [...]
Retail union ups pay ask to £12 per hour as cost of living spikes May 2, 2022 Retail firms should pay a minimum wage of at least £12 per hour, as recent pay hikes offer little respite against soaring inflation, a trade union has urged. In recent weeks, several large employers have hiked wages for shop floor and warehouse staff. Supermarket giant Tesco will raise hourly wages by 5.8 per cent from [...]
Value of global M&A falls as post-pandemic inflation shakes down figures May 2, 2022 The value of global M&A activity has dwindled in the first quarter of the year, as inflationary headwinds shake down valuations – and have blown other deals off the table. Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) have “clearly weakened” in the first few months of 2022, according to analytics firm GlobalData, with total transaction value slipping more [...]
China zero-Covid policy and Ukraine war brings Europe factory output to ‘standstill’ May 2, 2022 China’s adherence to zero-Covid tolerance policies and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has brought manufacturing “to a near standstill” in Europe, reveals a closely watched survey released today. Widespread shortages of raw materials used by factories on the Continent caused by Beijing plunging key trade hubs such as Shanghai into lockdown in response to a surge [...]
