Oil prices dip as investors ‘boo’ Opec production cut April 15, 2020 Oil prices have slipped this morning as investors worry that huge production cuts will not be enough to offset the slump in demand amid a deep, coronavirus-driven global recession. Brent crude fell 2.4 per cent to $28.90 per barrel in early London trading. US crude was 0.9 per cent lower at $19.94. The falls mean [...]
Coronavirus: Sports Direct-ly to a negative reaction April 15, 2020 Sports Direct recently attempted to keep its stores open despite the Government’s COVID-19 lockdown – arguing that, with gyms closed and Brits stuck indoors, exercise equipment counts as an essential service. YouGov polling reveals that the public overwhelmingly disagrees. Some 95% of Brits believe that sports equipment stores are not key services, and just 3% [...]
Coronavirus: Economists have a role to play in recovery April 15, 2020 Lockdowns are starting to be eased in Europe. Austria, Denmark, Italy and Spain are all moving back towards normality. At some point during May, the UK will follow. We can reflect on what the government has got right and wrong so far in the opening phase of the pandemic. This is emphatically not to apportion [...]
Coronavirus: Ferguson scraps dividend and $500m share buyback April 15, 2020 Ferguson has scrapped its dividend and suspended its $500m share buyback as the plumbing and heating business seeks to preserve cash during the coronavirus crisis. The firm also said the demerger of its Wolseley UK business “remains on track” to be completed this year but it will “require market conditions to normalise by the latter [...]
Costain secures £3.3bn HS2 contract that could create 6,000 jobs April 15, 2020 Engineering firm Costain has won a £3.3bn contract to design and build the tunnels connecting the HS2 railway to London Euston station. This initial phase of the High-Speed Two (HS2) railway project, which controversially got the go-ahead from government in February, will create 6,000 jobs, Costain said. Costain’s share price surged 23 per cent to [...]
FCA warns insurers to cough up on coronavirus payouts April 15, 2020 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) today urged insurers to pay out for business interruption claims that covered a coronavirus shutdown. In a letter to insurance bosses, the FCA’s interim chief executive Chris Woolard warned the watchdog would be carefully scrutinising the industry’s treatment of customers. The FCA said most business interruption policies did not cover [...]
Carr’s suspends dividend to hedge against coronavirus fallout April 15, 2020 Agriculture and engineering firm Carr’s has seen its half-year profit drop amid “significant” industry headwinds, it said today. The FTSE-listed farming supplies company has also deferred its dividend “until the full effects of coronavirus become clear, though it has not seen an impact so far. The figures Adjusted profit before tax slumped 16 per cent [...]
Trump blames coronavirus spread on World Health Organisation and pulls funding April 15, 2020 US President Donald Trump last night attacked the World Health Organisation for its handling of the coronavirus outbreak and halted its funding. Trump has become increasingly hostile the the WHO amid criticism of his administration’s coroanvirus response. The US President said the WHO has spread China’s “disinformation” about coronavirus which lead to a wider outbreak [...]
Businesses still struggling to access coronavirus loan scheme, says BCC April 15, 2020 Only two per cent of businesses have successfully managed to access the government’s coronavirus business interruption loan scheme (CBILS), according to a survey published today. Nine per cent of respondents to the survey by the British Chamber of Commerce (BCC) said they were unsuccessful with slow or no response from lenders the main reason cited. [...]
