UK retail sales crash a record 18.1 per cent in April lockdown May 22, 2020 UK retail sales plunged by a record 18.1 per cent during April’s lockdown, data showed today, with clothing sales halving compared to March. Sales of clothes crashed 50.2 per cent compared to March, while retail sales fell almost four times as badly as March’s 5.2 per cent fall, Office for National Statistics (ONS) data found. [...]
Time Out kicks off £49m placing and open offer to raise emergency cash for coronavirus shutdown May 22, 2020 Media and events company Time Out today said it was seeking to raise £49m via a share placing and open offer to bolster its balance sheet in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. The company has been hit by a closure of its food hall markets and the suspension of its print editions alongside a [...]
Carluccio’s cuts 1,000 jobs but 30 restaurants saved in rescue deal May 22, 2020 Italian restaurant chain Carluccio’s has been bought out of administration by the owner of Giraffe and Ed’s Easy Diner, resulting in the loss of more than 1,000 jobs. In total 40 Carluccio’s restaurants across the UK will close and 1,019 members of staff will be made redundant, administrators FRP Advisory announced this morning. Around 800 [...]
Close Brothers’ securities division helps to offset coronavirus impact May 22, 2020 A strong performance in Close Brothers Group’s securities division partially offset the impact of the coronavirus on the banking group in the third quarter. Winterflood Securities experienced a substantial increase in trading volumes since the coronavirus outbreak. The figures In Close Brothers’ banking division, the loan book reduced slightly in the third quarter. It decreased [...]
Future’s profit jumps 77 per cent as consumers turn to online publications May 22, 2020 Publishing group Future has reported a 77 per cent increase in profit in the first half of the year, as consumers turned to its digital offering amid the coronavirus crisis. The company had a record-breaking 329m online users in March 2020, as global lockdowns upended traditional distribution. The figures Adjusted operating profit for the six [...]
Coronavirus measures force UK borrowing up £62bn in April May 22, 2020 UK borrowing rose by £62.1bn in April alone as the government paid people’s wages and loaned businesses cash to survive the coronavirus lockdown, statistics showed today. Coronavirus measures like the job retention scheme to pay people’s wages, and coronavirus loans for businesses of all sizes, pushed UK borrowing to an all-time high last month. The [...]
There remains plenty for London to be optimistic about May 22, 2020 Back in January, I wrote that the City of London has much to be optimistic about. As a Hong Kong-based investor with close ties to the UK, I could see that the British people’s decision to leave the EU would have little material impact on its future success. I believed that the foundations were strong [...]
London’s businesses still need more help May 22, 2020 More than two months since lockdown began, large parts of the capital’s vibrant and thriving economy remain on ice. In particular, the leisure, cultural and hospitality sectors, which are a cornerstone of our city’s success, are at the sharp end of the crisis. Our buzzing night-time economy is on hold: the pubs, clubs and restaurants [...]
The City View: ‘Business is not going back to how it was, in any aspect’ – David Sproul, global deputy CEO of Deloitte May 22, 2020 In this episode Christian is joined by the deputy head of Deloitte worldwide, David Sproul, who says businesses around the world are asking themselves “whether we’ll ever go fully back to offices” as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Subscribe to The City View Podcast: Apple / Google / Spotify / RSS Sproul, who ran Deloitte in Europe before taking the global [...]
We need a new approach to city resilience May 22, 2020 Globally, cities are fundamental drivers of economic performance. If a nation’s major cities function well, the overall economy benefits in terms of jobs and innovation of products and services. The World Bank states that 55% of the world’s population – 4.2 billion people – now live in cities, generating 80% of global GDP. Protecting cities [...]
