Affordability in UK housing market plunges to 10-year low August 11, 2021 Affordability in the UK property market has plunged over the last year amid soaring house prices and stagnating wage growth, according to new figures published today. Research from Halifax shows the average home in the UK now costs 8.1 times average earnings, the highest on record since the lender started tracking the figures 10 years [...]
Amazon transfers £8.2bn of UK revenue to Luxembourg, report says August 11, 2021 Amazon has shifted some £8.2bn worth of UK revenues to European tax haven Luxembourg, a new report has claimed, as the ecommerce giant bats off calls for a tax inquiry. The retail heavyweight declared £13.7bn in UK revenues in 2019, however, filings for its UK-based companies said it only reported £5.5bn in sales. The report, [...]
Duty-free alcohol and cigarette sales fly as international travel recovers August 11, 2021 Duty-free alcohol and cigarettes sales have soared as British holidaymakers have made the most of relaxations in travel restrictions. Sales of alcohol and tobacco have risen 50 per cent to 100 per cent in recent days, duty-free giant Dufry AG said in a half-year trading update. The operator said it was encouraged by the uptick [...]
US inflation comes in hotter than expected in July August 11, 2021 US inflation come in higher than expectations in July and is still running above historic levels, according to official figures released today. US inflation hit 5.4 per cent annually in July, the same rate recorded in June, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Monthly inflation cooled to 0.5 per cent from 0.9 per [...]
Editorial: Slashing staff pay for remote work is a slap-dash response to the shifts of the pandemic August 11, 2021 To say the cost of living in London is more expensive than the cost of living in rural Sussex is so obvious, it hardly bears repeating. By every price index, rent, transport, coffee, pints or food, London tops the charts. Companies have always forked out more money for employees who live in expensive metropolitan cities. [...]
Deliveroo shares slip despite revenue soaring and lockdown orders doubling August 11, 2021 Lockdown favourite Deliveroo revenue jumped 82 per cent to £922m in the first half of the year, results out this morning showed. The number of orders doubled to shy of 150m in the first half of 2021 compared with 75m during the same period last year when the first national lockdown was introduced. Deliveroo said [...]
Burger chain Wendy’s to launch ‘ghost kitchens’ in UK August 11, 2021 U.S. burger chain Wendy’s has announced plans for 700 delivery kitchens including in locations across the UK. The company announced a development commitment by REEF to launch 700 ‘ghost kitchens’ over the next five years across the U.S., Canada and UK. The delivery kitchen concept will target consumers keen to maintain at-home leisure habits beyond [...]
CMA backs Ofgem cuts to energy network returns August 11, 2021 The competition watchdog has today ruled in favour of Ofgem’s plans to slash returns for investors in the UK’s energy network. In its provisional ruling, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) knocked back the appeals of several of the country’s biggest energy suppliers, but acknowledged that the energy regulator had erred in some areas. It [...]
East London state school outperforms Eton in Oxbridge offers August 11, 2021 Brampton Manor Academy, a school in east London is celebrating after 55 students obtained the A-level grades to study at Oxford or Cambridge, more than the offers made to prestigious Eton College. The majority of pupils at the school in Newham are from ethnic minority backgrounds, receive free school meals (FSMs), or will be the [...]
Build to rent on track for record investment as investors eye projects outside London August 11, 2021 The build to rent market has received record levels of investment in the first two quarters of the year, according to new research. In the first half of the year, £2.35bn of capital was invested into the sector including more than £1.27bn in Q1 and an additional £1.08bn in Q2. Global property consultancy Knight Frank [...]
