UK house prices dip as coronavirus lockdown makes sales ‘almost impossible’ April 20, 2020 UK house prices dipped during the coronavirus lockdown as experts warned the housing market was barely functioning due to the restrictions. The latest data from Rightmove showed that the average price of property coming to market dipped 0.2 per cent to £311,950. In April last year UK house prices increased 2.1 per cent. However, Rightmove [...]
Coronavirus: Knight Frank and Rightmove call for stamp duty holiday to reignite market April 20, 2020 Estate agent Knight Frank and property platform Rightmove have both backed a stamp duty holiday as part of a package of measures to reignite the housing market after the coronavirus lockdown is lifted. The companies have separately called for a stamp duty holiday to be among a range of measures designed to stimulate the market, [...]
Jewish Chronicle plunged into bitter row as bidders circle April 17, 2020 The Jewish Chronicle has been plunged into a bitter row as rival factions line up bids to take control of the newspaper ahead of a crunch meeting next week. Earlier this month the London weekly announced it was seeking a creditors’ voluntary liquidation alongside the Jewish News, with which it had previously agreed to merge. [...]
Coronavirus: Redrow secures £300m facility through BoE’s emergency scheme April 9, 2020 Housebuilder Redrow has secured a £300m lending facility under the Bank of England’s emergency coronavirus financing scheme. The developer, which has furloughed 80 per cent of its staff using the job retention scheme, is also in talks to extend its existing revolving credit facility by £100m to £350m. Redrow said this morning that it expects [...]
Private Equity: The Weight of the COVID-19 Crown April 7, 2020 Private equity (PE) often claims the financial crown of outperformance. But I am referring to that other, now infamous, Latin word for crown — corona — the shape of which lends its name to the current coronavirus pandemic. So how will it affect PE? Introduction PE investing is about absolute return, not outperformance, in my [...]
Coronavirus: Luxury brands braced for a bumpy ride April 7, 2020 It’s hard to erase the memory of red-and-white sale signs in the world’s most prestigious stores on Madison Avenue, New York, at the end of 2008. Stores that rarely offered discounts in their flagships slashed prices to move stock to very few shoppers. The luxury sector is not quite witnessing the same carnage as the [...]
Nationwide further tightens criteria for new mortgages as coronavirus crisis bites April 1, 2020 Building society Nationwide has further tightened its lending criteria, excluding bonus, overtime and commission as income it recognises for new mortgage applications. The move follows its decision yesterday to withdraw its offering for low deposit borrowers. Nationwide yesterday withdrew mortgages above 75 per cent loan-to-value (LTV) from its online and broker channels and restricted them [...]
M&A crashes across the globe as coronavirus freezes economic activity March 31, 2020 Dealmaking has plunged across the world as the calamitous health and economic impact of coronavirus sends M&A into the deep freeze. Data from Refinitiv showed global M&A activity in the first quarter is down 28 per cent on the same quarter last year at $697bn (£560bn). By number of deals, worldwide M&A has fallen 14 [...]
Nationwide pulls sales of mortgages for small deposit holders March 31, 2020 Nationwide is temporarily pulling its mortgage offering for low-deposit borrowers including first-time buyers as Britain’s biggest building society grapples with the impact of coronavirus on the housing market. Nationwide said that from Tuesday it would withdraw all fixed-rate and tracker mortgages above 75% loan-to-value (LTV) from sale for remortgage, first-time buyers, and new house purchases. [...]
How vertical farming can future-proof our food supply chain to withstand crises March 31, 2020 The spread of Covid-19 across the globe has brought to light many new challenges, from insufficiencies in healthcare to the stability of the global economy. Equally as important, but less talked about, is whether our global food supply chain is able to withstand the impact of pandemics — now and in the future. It is [...]