Coronavirus: US stocks shake off dire unemployment data March 26, 2020 US stocks shook off awful unemployment data this afternoon to climb higher as traders pinned their hopes on a $2 trillion economic stimulus package. The Nasdaq rose 3.5 per cent by 4.30pm, while the Dow Jones climbed a whopping 4.9 per cent. The S&P 500 posted a large rise of 4.3 per cent. Yesterday the [...]
Cupboard Love: Our new daily column on isolation cooking – today, chickpea curry March 26, 2020 Chickpeas are a mystery to science. At some indeterminate point in modern history, every household in the UK was issued with between one and six cans of chickpeas, which were arbitrarily distributed at the back of their cupboards. Nobody knows how they got there, and most people don’t even know they exist, but search your [...]
UK becomes biggest donor in race to find coronavirus vaccine March 26, 2020 The UK is now the biggest donor toward finding a coronavirus vaccine, after Boris Johnson pledged a further £210m in a call between G20 leaders today. Johnson also announced £40m of funding for developing affordable treatments, £23m on research for new testing devices, and £50m on a joint advertising campaign with Unilever to explain the [...]
UK coronavirus: Death toll jumps by more than 100 in a day March 26, 2020 The UK coronavirus death toll has jumped by more than 100 in a day for the first time, reaching 578 in total. As of 5pm this evening, 115 people across the UK had died in the previous 24 hours after contracting the virus. Meanwhile, the number of confirmed cases in the UK rose to 11,658. [...]
Weir axes dividends, slashes US jobs and cuts costs as coronavirus crisis hits firm March 26, 2020 Energy services and engineering firm Weir has scrapped its dividend as a result of coronavirus uncertainty. The FTSE 250 listed, Glasgow-based company, becomes the latest in a list of firms to do this as they try to cut costs. Although it reported a return to normality with its Chinese operations, the company’s main area of [...]
Mirror publisher Reach warns on coronavirus advertising impact March 26, 2020 Daily Mirror publisher Reach today said it expected advertising revenue and print circulation to be hit during the coronavirus outbreak. The media group, which also publishes the Daily Express, said advertisers would defer campaigns, while circulation would be impacted both by social distancing measures and store closures. The firm also warned that its events division, [...]
How to resolve contract disputes during the Covid-19 pandemic March 26, 2020 The impact of Covid-19 on businesses is unprecedented and profound. Government restrictions and guidelines, the impact on supply chains and the unavailability of staff are all affecting businesses’ ability to comply with contractual obligations. Stewarts has received many requests for advice from companies whose manufacturing plants are being shut down, or whose supply chains are [...]
Apple donates 10m face masks to healthcare workers for coronavirus relief effort March 26, 2020 Apple will donate 10m face masks to US healthcare workers as part of worldwide efforts to halt the spread of coronavirus. Chief executive Tim Cook said the tech giant would also provide “millions more” masks for the hardest hit regions in Europe. “Apple has sourced, procured and donated 10m masks to the medical community in [...]
Coronavirus: Bank of England holds rates but paints gloomy economic picture March 26, 2020 The Bank of England has kept interest rates on hold at the record low level of 0.1 per cent but signalled it is prepared to take further action to tackle the effects of coronavirus. The Bank’s monetary policy committee (MPC) today said it “stands ready to respond further as necessary to guard against an unwarranted [...]
Coronavirus: FTSE firms get an extra two months to publish results March 26, 2020 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) today said listed companies could have an extra two months to publish their financial results. In a joint statement with audit regulator the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) and the Bank of England’s Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), the FCA said: “Companies and their auditors currently face unprecedented challenges in preparing and [...]