Asian stocks slip on oil and coronavirus pessimism April 3, 2020 Asian stocks dropped overnight as oil prices pared some of their gains and investors braced themselves for another weekend of headlines about the spread of coronavirus. China’s Shanghai composite index fell 0.8 per cent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 0.7 per cent, and Japan’s Nikkei slipped 0.1 per cent. Australia’s S&P ASX fell 1.7 per [...]
Primark bosses take 50 per cent pay cut over coronavirus April 3, 2020 Primark bosses have taken a 50 per cent pay cut and cancelled bonuses after warning of a huge slump in 2020 profit due to coronavirus. Chief executive Paul Marchant’s base pay will be halved temporarily. George Weston and John Bason, CEO and chief financial officer of Primark owner Associated British Foods (ABF), will also take [...]
UK consumer confidence plunges after deepest quarterly decline on record April 3, 2020 UK consumer confidence in the first quarter of the year fell nine percentage points as the coronavirus pandemic hit home. Confidence in job security fell 15 percentage points from the previous quarter to -20, Deloitte’s consumer tracker showed. Sentiment in the state of the economy fell to -71, with consumers signposting a further three percentage [...]
UK retail sales: Coronavirus triggers worst month on record April 3, 2020 UK retail sales plummeted to the worst levels on record in March as footfall plunged and non-essential stores were forced to close amid the coronavirus pandemic. Like-for-like UK retail sales at physical stores fell by a record 34.1 per cent and total like-for-like sales, both in-store and online combined, fell 17.9 per cent. Lifestyle and [...]
Chancellor shakes up coronavirus loan scheme after criticism of banks April 2, 2020 Chancellor Rishi Sunak said tonight that he is extending a coronavirus loan scheme for small businesses and introducing a new loan scheme for businesses with revenue up to £500m. The Treasury also said it would ban lenders from requesting personal guarantees for loans under £250,000. And Sunak pledged “operational changes” to speed up lending approvals. [...]
Arcadia furloughs 14,500 staff following coronavirus shutdown April 2, 2020 Retailer Arcadia today said it was furloughing 14,500 of its workers after it shut its stores because of the coronavirus pandemic. The Topshop-owner also said that its board and senior leadership team were taking a salary reduction of between 25 per cent and 50 per cent. Arcadia closed its physical stores two weeks ago as [...]
Podcast giant Acast doubles revenue as on-demand listening grows April 2, 2020 Podcast giant Acast doubled its revenue last year as it racked up almost 2bn listens on its growing portfolio of shows. The Stockholm-based firm, which helps podcast makers distribute and monetise their shows, reported revenue of 361m Swedish krona (£29m) in 2019, up from 180m krona the previous year. Acast, whose shows include the Adam [...]
Coronavirus: British Airways owner IAG suspends 90 per cent of flights April 2, 2020 British Airways owner IAG has said it will now suspend 90 per cent of its flights, up from the 75 per cent previously announced, as the airline industry looks to protect itself against the coronavirus outbreak. IAG joins other UK airlines such as Ryanair and Easyjet, who have both suspended all or almost all of [...]
Matt Hancock sets target of 100,000 coronavirus tests a day by end of April April 2, 2020 The government has struck a deal to work with the private sector and universities to reach a tenfold increase in daily coronavirus tests by the end of the month. Health secretary Matt Hancock unveiled a five-point plan at today’s daily press briefing to increase testing rates to 100,000 tests per day in just a few [...]
NHS issues emergency contracts for video GP services due to pandemic April 2, 2020 Patients across England will be able to see their GP via a video consultation after the NHS issued emergency contracts to health tech firms due to the coronavirus outbreak. NHS England has handed contracts to 11 providers after health officials invited companies to an emergency tender process last month. The fast-tracked deals mean GP surgeries [...]
